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Monster Girl Saga	By : GenocideHeart Category: +M through R > Monster Girl Quest Views: 113526 -:- Recommendations : 6 -:- Currently Reading : 16
Disclaimer: I do not own Monster Girl Quest, nor the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 7
- 8
- 9
(A/N: Time for a new chapter. This one may cause some people to want to crucify me, but eh. :-p

As usual, thanks to Toraneko from TFF for proofing. Enjoy!)

CHAPTER 8

What is dear to one’s heart?

Luka awoke to the warmth of sunlight on his face. Blinking, he groaned and turned away from the offending brightness, muttering under his breath. He still felt tired, and his muscles ached. As he tried to get some more sleep, a shuffling sound was heard in the room, and he looked up with bleary eyes to see Alice come in and give him a critical look.

“What are you doing still asleep? It’s nearly noon. Get up,” she chided him. “Don’t tell me you are this worn out from yesterday? Some Hero.”

“...quiet, you devil,” he grunted halfheartedly, feeling too tired to even be properly angry but still putting out his best effort. “What the hell was that for, anyway?”

“Oh, come on,” Alice said with a knowing look. “Don’t pretend like you didn’t enjoy it.”

“That’s not the point!” Luka snapped, bolting upright all of a sudden and causing Alice to take a startled step back. “Why’d you go and assault me like that?!”

Luka glared at the older woman. He opened his mouth, as if to say more, but stopped suddenly, biting his lip as his eyes shifted downward and he appeared to think. He took a few deep breaths, shaking his head.

“All right... let me try this again. Gotta keep it civil...” he muttered. Sighing, he looked up at the Echidna. “First of all: I’m sorry if I offended you. I didn’t mean it. I was tired and tense from the events of the past few days, and I may have said some tactless things without intending to be offensive. For that, I apologize.”

“Um... okay,” Alice nodded, not sure where Luka was going with his speech, although she still appreciated the apology. “But...?”

“But it was still unnecessary!” Luka pointed out, irritated. “Look, I don’t mind if you need to relieve yourself of stress. I don’t even mind if you decide to blow off some steam on me. But I do mind that you didn’t even try to ask me. Would it have killed you to do that?”

“Wait a minute,” Alice said, incredulous. “You aren’t angry because I assaulted you, but because I didn’t ask?! Aren’t you missing something here?”

“Like I said, it was partially my fault that you got so aggravated,” Luka replied, shaking his head. “Then it would be my responsibility to help you calm down and relax, wouldn’t it? I wouldn’t really mind even if it were just you toying with me, and if it makes you feel better, I would let you do whatever you want. Just... I’d like it if you made a request first. Even if you don’t intend to let me say no, even if you already know I probably won't refuse... do it nonetheless. I just want to feel like I have a choice, even if the choice is just an illusion. Does that make sense?”

“It... does, I guess,” Alice nodded slowly. “I think I can understand your logic. Even if it’s really strange. Are you really more upset about me not asking than you are about me actually having my way with you?”

“Well... yeah. Besides, your wounded pride was satisfied, was it not?” Luka asked. At Alice’s nod, he shrugged. “Then it’s fine. Can I assume I’m forgiven for making you angry?”

“...Yes, you can,” Alice nodded, slightly bewildered. She then grew thoughtful, and gave him an odd look. After a moment of hesitation, she sighed. “And for what it’s worth, I apologize for the sudden assault, as well. I guess it was less than upstanding of me.”

“Then we’re even, we learned something about each other, and I guess we won’t make the same mistakes again, yes?” Luka said, smiling for the first time since he woke up. A slightly confused, and somewhat impressed, Alice could only make an affirmative noise at the sudden mood swing. “Right, then. Well, no sense dwelling on the past. Say, where did you go this morning? I woke up just as you came back.”

“I went to check on the monster children, actually,” Alice explained. “Particularly the Dragon pup. When she mentioned her bloodline, I got a little interested.”

“Bloodline? You mean her family name?” Luka asked as he slowly got up off the bed, wincing as his groin protested, still sore from the previous day. The Echidna nodded.

“Hmm. The Bloodbane name holds meaning, even today,” she explained. “Garmr Bloodbane was the first Dragon Queen, and arguably the strongest Dragon in history. Granberia can also trace her ancestry back to her, but she is from a more distant offshoot of the Bloodbane line.”

“Wait, so Tyris and Granberia are related?” Luka asked, surprised. “But come to think of it, Tyris looks nothing like Granberia...”

“That’s because Tyris is a Great Dragonian pup,” Alice replied. “Granberia is a Dragonkin - one of the more humanoid dragon offshoots. Great Dragonians are more primal variations, closer to the great beasts they originated as than the vastly diluted bloodlines of Dragonkin.”

“Diluted? As in, less pure?” Luka wondered. “How does that even work?”

“Dragons are peculiar in that their bloodlines are strongly affected by who they mate with,” Alice explained. “As Dragons mate with humans, they become more and more humanoid in appearance with each successive generation, until the family line eventually becomes nothing but dragonkin. However, if a Dragon mates with a human with dragon blood in his family line, the bloodline is strengthened again, and their offspring will be something closer to their ancestors. That is usually how Great Dragonians are typically born, and it makes them something of a nobility among Dragons. Great Dragonians are usually the inheritors of the family name for this reason, whereas the more human-like offshoots typically cannot do so.”

“And that’s why Tyris looks like that and bears her family name, and Granberia doesn't,” Luka nodded, understanding. “It’s surprisingly simple, when one stops and thinks about it.” Then something occurred to him. “Say, you also have a family name, don’t you? Does that mean you also have a particularly strong bloodline?”

“That’s part of the reason,” Alice confirmed. “Also, I’m an Echidna, if you recall. We are a rare breed of monster, rare enough that we get to have family names. Rarity of a breed is also a factor in these things.”

“I see,” Luka nodded. “Thank you for clearing that up. So, uh...” he asked hesitantly. “Exactly... what is so special about your kind? I didn’t really find much information about them...”

“That’s not surprising,” the white-haired monster stated with a chuckle. “We’re rare to begin with, and details about us are kept intentionally hidden from humans. Largely, our claims to fame are that we have enormous magical talent, and that our offspring are... pretty random.”

“Huh?” Luka said, confused. Alice shot him a mischievous look.

“Didn’t I just say we keep information about our kind hidden from humans?” she teased him. “Sorry, but I can’t tell you anything more.”

“Now that’s cruel,” Luka groaned. “You got me curious, and now you're holding back?”

“Have patience. Maybe in the future all shall be revealed to you,” Alice chided him. “A proper Hero should be able to endure, too. Being impatient will get you nowhere.”

“Says the one who was trying to get me to go save the honey first,” Luka muttered, then froze as Alice got a stiff smile plastered on her face.

“Hmm? Did I hear something just now?” she asked in a sweet, plainly fake tone. Luka began to sweat.

“Uh... ahahahaha, no, you’re imagining things,” he replied unconvincingly, then made a scene of looking at the cuckoo clock on the wall. “Oh, would you look at the time! I gotta check on Thermidor! Sorry!” he hastily concluded as he grabbed his clothes and bolted out of the room.

“...It seems the lesson about watching what he says will take a while to sink in,” Alice mused dryly. “Oh well. I will let it slide... just this once. After all,” she finished with a wicked smile as she licked her lips, “he did volunteer to help me relieve my stress whenever I want...”

----

Luka entered the room he and Thermidor shared, closing the door behind him. Sighing, he set his Enrikan shirt aside, electing to only put his pants back on, and dropped on the nearest couch. For a while, he relaxed, his eyes closed, until a discreet coughing sound caused him to look up again. Focusing on Thermidor’s bed, he saw she was awake, and looking at him.

“Ah, Thermidor! Did I wake you up?” he greeted her cheerfully. “Sorry about that. I’m a little out of it...”

“I can imagine,” Thermidor replied. “I heard about yesterday’s... incident... from Alice.”

“Ah. That.” Luka faltered, not sure what to say. Thermidor sat up, giving him an evaluating look.

“I will be honest: I cannot entirely blame her for assaulting you,” she clarified. “You managed to make some pretty thoughtless comments. Even so, her reaction was excessive. We had... words. I don’t think they had any effect, but they had to be said.”

“Actually, they just might have,” Luka told her. “I had a talk with her myself. We apologized to each other, and reached a bit of an agreement. Although I nearly put my foot in my mouth again...”

“You... talked with her?” Thermidor asked, surprised. “And she actually apologized? I’m impressed. I didn’t expect that.”

“Well, I apologized first, to be fair,” Luka specified. “And for the most part, I wasn’t angry at her for yanking me in a random room and having her way right there, but about her not even trying to ask. I can understand that she was upset. After all, between that little Lamia’s comments and my own careless talking, her pride must’ve gotten worked over pretty badly.”

“You don’t know the half of it,” Thermidor chuckled. “Alice was actually more than just a bit humiliated by the whole thing. I have to admit, I can somewhat relate to her, even if I’m still cross at her for taking her frustration out on you.”

“Eh, I deserved it a bit, didn’t I?” Luka shrugged. “And as I said, we have an understanding now. I think there won’t be any accidents like this one in the future... although I expect I'll get on her bad side and have to help her unwind again sooner or later. I’m not too terribly good at dealing with people who can’t take plain talking well.”

“You’re better than you think at that,” Thermidor disagreed. “It’s true you occasionally say the wrong thing, but you also seem to have a knack for saying the exact right thing when it truly matters. Alice told me you persuaded all four of those bandit kids on your own, and all she had to do was largely watch.”

“Well... that’s true,” Luka nodded. “But really, is being able to talk kids into doing things that much of a big deal?”

“It is with monsters,” Thermidor nodded. “Even at a young age, they tend to be headstrong. You did well.” Her approving look then turned to one of accusation. “Although, I’d like to know what you were thinking, using yourself as bait to lure them out. Didn’t you say ‘I will be careful’ before leaving?”

“Er, ahahahaha. She told you that, too?” Luka asked, beginning to sweat a bit. Mentally, he leveled a brief curse at Alice’s big mouth.

“Yes. Yes, she did,” Thermidor nodded, glaring at him. “Really, Luka, is this how you keep me from worrying?”

“S... sorry. It felt like a good idea at the moment,” Luka replied meekly, bowing his head. Thermidor glared at him for a while longer, then sighed and dropped back on the pillow.

“I’ll let it slide for now, seeing how it all ended well,” she murmured. “But you better not pull more asinine stuff like this while you’re in Happiness Village, you hear me?!”

“I’ll be careful, Thermidor,” Luka nodded. Thermidor shot him a dubious look, but let the argument drop. Seeing a chance to veer the subject in a less touchy direction, Luka began to gesticulate animatedly. “Hey, have I told you about that new awesome sword Alice gave me? It-”

“You mean that repulsive-looking abomination I've seen you carrying around lately?” Thermidor interrupted him. “It’d be rather hard not to see it. Even if I wanted to.”

“Er, yeah, it’s not exactly the most attractive artifact I’ve ever seen, either...” Luka admitted, wincing. “In fact, it looks pretty evil. But it’s actually pretty awesome! It can’t kill monsters!”

“I heard that from Alice, as well,” Thermidor nodded. “She said the way you fight is considerably different when you don’t have to worry about holding back. I’m almost tempted to get out of bed and see for myself, but if I did I’d collapse on the spot, so I’ll have to be patient and wait until I’m recovered before I can see you fight to the best of your ability. I do look forward to it, though.”

“Hehe, yeah,” Luka giggled, puffing up a bit with pride. “Well, I messed up a little, but...”

“The first monster you fought didn’t count, as you were still testing that sword,” Thermidor stated. “And I know you, Luka. You would never be able to fight children at full strength. I think you still have much to show, though, so don’t worry too much.”

“Hmm. You’re right,” Luka smiled. “Alright then! Once you’re recovered, I promise I’ll show you what I can really do!” His smile then faltered. “Ah, but that doesn’t mean I’ll go out of my way to look for a fight...”

“Of course you won’t,” Thermidor rolled her eyes. “That’d clash so badly with your personality I’d have to question who replaced you and where the real you went.”

“Hahaha, that’s true, isn’t it?” Luka laughed again. He then looked out of the window and sighed, getting up from the couch and moving to recover his Enrikan shirt. “I think I’ll go take a walk in town before lunchtime. I’ll be back in a bit. I also want to check on the children and see how they’re doing.”

“I’ll go back to sleep, then,” Thermidor nodded. “I honestly shouldn’t even be awake, but I can’t stay asleep. I worry about you, you know.”

“I know,” Luka smiled at her as he moved towards the door. “And I’m very grateful to you for it. But I want you to take it easy. It’s not like I’m going to get in even more trouble over a small visit to a human village nearby, right?”

With those words, he left the room. Thermidor stared at the door, then sighed as she rolled over and dozed off again. She wasn’t too sure things would go as smoothly as Luka claimed, but she’d trust him for the time being. And hopefully he wouldn’t make too much of a mess next time.

----

A few minutes later, Luka was strolling down the main street of Iliasburg, heading for the blacksmith’s shop. He had already checked on Serine, who was working at the inn, and Sawako, whom he’d run into as she was making deliveries around town, and both appeared to be in high spirits, cheerfully greeting him from afar.

Walking down the road, he spotted the apothecary’s shop, and remembered Viran worked there. Curious about how the little Vampire was doing, he decided to stop by briefly before proceeding to Po’s shop.

As he entered the apothecary, the fragrance of herbs and concoctions assaulted him. He sniffed the air appreciatively; whatever this apothecary was mixing had a pretty good scent. He made a note to ask around town for opinions on the man’s skill.

Looking around, he spotted Viran lounging around the counter, looking bored. Making his way up to her, he saw her eyes wander to him and light up. She smiled and ran up to him.

“Hey, hey, Luka!” she greeted him happily. Then, without warning, her eyes flashed, causing Luka to blink as he felt an intrusion in his mind. “Buy 10,000 herbs!”

“Buy... 10,000...” Luka found himself replying mechanically as he reached for his pouch. Just then, the apothecary came out of the back, grabbed a paper fan and smacked the tiny Vampire upside the head with it, causing her to lose concentration and her spell to break.

“Hey, kid! No hypnotizing the clients!” he yelled at her in a sickly, but somewhat scary voice. “How many times do I gotta tell you this?!”

“Aw, but Boss Jeeeeean...” Viran protested with a pout. “We’d sell a lot more if you let me do it my way!”

“Yeah, and then I’d get my shop closed up and myself chased outta town by an angry mob with pitchforks,” he shot back. “You can’t mug your clients! I don’t mind if you use your charm, just don’t mack money off them with magic! That’s just bad form!”

“Aww, you're no fun!” Viran pouted again, walking off dejectedly. Jean looked at her, shaking his head, then cast an apologetic glance at Luka.

“Sorry ‘bout that,” he said. “Kid means well, she’s just not used to the whole ‘get money from people fair and square’ bit. She’s got a good eye for potions, though. She’ll go places... provided she can stay out of trouble that long.”

“Ahahahaha... you look like you have your hands full with her,” Luka laughed awkwardly as he scratched his head. The apothecary made a negative headshake.

“Nah, she’s been great help,” he said, coughing and wheezing slightly. “I just gotta teach her how to properly conduct transactions, is all. She’s a good girl, just overeager.”

“Are you sure it’ll be all right? You look kinda haggard...” Luka asked, worried. Viran wouldn’t have...?

“Ah, that’s because those useless sacks of flesh from Iliasport broke two of my supplies boxes, and I had to clean up the mess until now,” he said, a venomous tone sneaking in his voice. “They always do that, may they catch leprosy and have their important parts fall off. I’m used to it, it’s just I inhaled too much dust and had a coughing fit. Left me short on breath, see.”

“I-I see,” Luka nodded politely. Inwardly, he thought, It looks more like his lungs are about to crawl out of his mouth and flee to me, but he refrained from making any more comments, instead giving the sickly man his regards and leaving. As he closed the apothecary’s door behind him, he sighed in relief. Apparently, Viran was well-behaved overall, although that magical mugging attempt had him worried.

The apothecary seemed to think he had things firmly under control, though, and admittedly he appeared to be able to handle Viran on his own. Luka decided to trust the man’s judgment. After all, he seemed to intimidate even the Vampire girl. Humming a tune, he set out to check on Tyris and Po’s progress.

As he reached the blacksmith, he heard an odd noise coming from inside, something like a loud fwooosh. Blinking, he wondered what that was all about, then shrugged and decided to head in and see for himself. After all, that was what he’d come there for.

As soon as he opened the blacksmith’s door, a blast of hot air hit him, causing him to gasp as he found himself unable to breathe. He quickly moved away from the door and the furnace-like heat coming from inside. He could’ve sworn that he felt his eyebrows being singed away for a moment.

Looking at the door, he belatedly realized that there was a “Forging - Do Not Enter” sign hanging from it. He winced, realizing what the heat was - Po’s forge must have been working full force at the moment. Steeling himself and taking a deep breath, Luka slowly approached and began to advance in the scalding heat inside, closing the door behind him.

He quickly located the forge in the shop’s back, and as he entered, he stopped, eyes widening at the sight before him.

Tyris was currently breathing intense fire in the forge, igniting it to a level he didn’t think was possible, while Po, shirtless and sweaty but not appearing especially bothered by the withering heat, was using his uninjured hand to shift the coal within the forge around. Sparks flew out of the forge’s mouth, and the air was almost unbearably hot.

As he looked on, Tyris noticed him and stopped spewing fire, producing herself in a big smile and running up to him. Quickly, she hugged him, and he winced, realizing her own body heat had increased radically from her constantly kindling the fire.

“Yay! It’s Luka!” she yelled in delight, still hugging him. Luka felt himself drip with sweat: it had been hot enough when he’d entered, but back there, it was even worse, and he was fairly sure he currently looked like he had just taken a dip in a river, clothes and all. Luka gave Po an incredulous look, seeing the big man wave his hand at him.

“What the hell... is this...?” He gasped out. “How can you... even survive in... this heat?”

“Used to it, my boy,” Po replied, grinning. “And also, I learned the art of smithing from the Fire Spirit. My apprenticeship was in a volcano. Compared to that, this is a chilly breeze.”

“Fire Spirit...? Never mind... I don’t have the strength... to ask,” Luka muttered. “Can we go... outside before I... get cooked alive?”

“Sure, it was about time to take a break,” Po nodded. He then shot Tyris a knowing glance. “Oi, lass. Didn’t you have a gift for Luka here?”

“Ah, that’s right!” Tyris exclaimed, her face lighting up. “I’ll go upstairs and fetch it!”

With that, she untangled from Luka and bolted away, looking none the worse for wear from the heat. Luka shook his head as he headed for the shop’s back entrance, and before long, he was sighing in relief, breathing in the fresh outside air.

“Ahhh, that’s better,” he murmured, smiling. “I thought I’d melt into a puddle in there.”

“Come now, boy, don’t be a wimp,” Po chided him. “You should get used to heat, too. Never know when it’s gonna be handy.”

“Hey, it’s not like I’ll ever wander into a volcano like you did,” Luka protested. “I’ll be fine as I am, thanks a lot!”

“Suit yourself,” Po shrugged. He then gave him a thoughtful look, and after a bit, he nodded to himself. “Say, do you still have your other sword? The broken one?”

“Huh? Yeah, of course. It’s a precious memory of my mother,” Luka nodded. “Why do you ask?”

“Well, my arm’s gettin’ better by the day, and the lass said she wants to help ya, so we thought we’d reforge it for you,” Po explained. “All you gotta do is leave it with us. We promise we’ll take great care of it, of course.”

“Yeah! I’ll treat it like a treasure!” Tyris shouted, appearing suddenly out of nowhere with a small pouch in her hands. “Oh, before I forget! Here, this is for you, big bro!”

“Eh? For me? What’s this...?” Luka asked, curious, as he unveiled the content of the pouch. He stared in surprise: it was a smooth, round orb-like gem, colored a deep red and which reflected sunlight beautifully, giving everything around it a red hue. “Huh? This looks valuable...”

“Some merchant guy dropped it when he ran away from us a while back,” she explained cheerfully. “It looks real pretty, so I want you to have it as a gift! It’s my thanks for helping us!”

“But this is stolen...” Luka muttered, dubious. Looking at Tyris, he saw some anxiety on her face, and decided to set his misgivings aside and accept the gift. Worst case scenario, he could always return it to its legitimate owners if he ever ran into them. Nodding at Tyris, he smiled. “Very well, I’ll accept it. Thank you. It’s a really nice gift.”

“Hehe, I’m glad you like it,” Tyris smiled. “Hey, hey, did Uncle Po tell you about what we wanna do with your sword?”

“Yeah, he did,” Luka nodded. “I appreciate the thought. Will you really be fine, though? You just started out...”

“Don’t worry, don’t worry!” Tyris waved his concerns away impatiently. “Uncle Po will walk me through the whole thing! I promise I’ll make your sword super awesome!”

“I’ll wait until my arm is in good shape again, so that I can also work on your sword,” Po added. “Don’t worry, we will do a good job of it. Plus, once forged in the lass’s dragonfire, your sword will be a lot sturdier than before.”

“Very well, then, I’ll drop by later and give you the sword,” Luka nodded with a smile. “And, thank you both for your generous offer.”

“It’s nothing, my boy,” Po waved nonchalantly. “You helped us both a lot, you know. Least we can do!”

“Thanks nonetheless,” Luka insisted. He then grew thoughtful. “Still, what you said before has me worried. I think I won’t risk that sword again in the future. It’s too precious to me. I’ll head home with it once it’s done and drop it off there for safekeeping.”

“Hmm, but that’d be such a waste,” Po said, dubious. “A fine sword like the one we’ll forge for you is meant to be used, not just left somewhere to gather dust.”

"What are you talking about, Uncle Po?" Tyris chimed in in disagreement. "Treasured items are meant to be kept safe forever! Big bro is right, if that sword’s so precious to him, he should put it somewhere safe so it’s not in danger of being ruined or stolen!"

“Now that’s typical dragon logic, lass,” Po disagreed. “A warrior and his weapon are meant to be inseparable, and they're meant to be on the battlefield. It’s disrespectful to the weapon’s spirit to set it aside like that.”

“Well, excuse me for being a dragon!” Tyris shot back. “We place great value on things we’re attached to! We protect ‘em with all our might, and never let anyone touch our treasures!”

“And that ends up attracting thieves, doesn’t it?” Po argued back. “There’s a fundamental mistake in that logic...!”

Luka watched the two go back and forth, and realized they were getting into and argument and had forgotten his presence already. Blinking, he gave them both one last look, then shrugged and turned around, leaving them to their debate. He knew better than to get caught in a philosophical discussion between an adventurer and a dragon, and besides, he was dripping with so much sweat it looked like he’d fallen in a lake, and was in dire need of a refreshing.

Deciding he’d done all he needed to, he hurried back to the Sutherland Inn. A fresh bath, some good food and the rest of the day off before setting out for Happiness Village sounded just about right.

----

The next day saw Luka up early as always. Thermidor had returned to a deep sleep, and Luka made sure to stop by Ilsa’s office and thank her for keeping an eye on the resting fencer. Promising her that he’d return from Happiness Village with good news, he then left the Inn and headed into town. He had one more thing to do before finally setting out in his second ‘solo’ adventure, and he had to hurry. Alice had left before him, and would be meeting him outside town.

It didn’t take long to reach the blacksmith’s shop. Checking the door for warning signs, Luka was relieved to see none. He was not sure he’d have survived another walk through Hell on Earth like the previous day’s. Pushing the front door slightly, he went inside.

“Excuse me!” he called out, not seeing anyone in sight. Almost immediately, shuffling sounds were heard from the back, and moments later Tyris bolted out, leisurely followed by Po, and jumped at Luka, tackling him mid-flight.

“Yaha! Good morning, Luka!” she shouted cheerfully as she hugged him. Luka sighed. Tyris seemed to have taken a strong liking to him, as she was overly affectionate whenever they met. He playfully ruffled her hair, eliciting a cooing sound from the little Dragon.

“I see you’re as energetic as ever even this early in the morning,” he told her with a smile. He then looked at Po and raised his hand, showing him his damaged Iron Sword. Po nodded as he took it.

“Right then, we’ll get to fixin’ it in a couple days,” he told him. “My arm’s almost done healing up. Good thing I heal fast, too.” He then gave him an appreciative look. “I hear you’re setting out on another adventure. Going to check on Happiness Village, eh?”

“That’s the plan,” Luka nodded. “Say, you were an adventurer in your day, right? Is there anything I should know about that place?”

“Don’t know much, I’m afraid,” Po replied with an apologetic look. “I was an adventurer, yes, but my old stompin’ grounds were northern Sentora and Hellgondo. I only came to Ilias in my old age, when I was retired already.”

“I see... wait, Hellgondo?!” Luka asked, his eyes widening. “You adventured in such a dangerous place?! Wow, you must’ve been very strong...”

“Haha! I’m well into my sixties, boy,” Po told him. “Used to adventure there before things with monsters went pear-shaped. Hellgondo was a lot less dangerous back then.” His expression then clouded over. “That thing about monsters killing everyone in Remina is a load of horse manure, too. I was born there... I remember monsters being nice and helpful to all humans, and humans were helpful right back. There were occasional problems, but it was a good arrangement. Whatever happened there thirty years ago, I know monsters didn’t do it. But Hellgondo got locked up tighter than a chastity belt afterwards, and I was never able to return there and investigate.”

“Is that so? Interesting...” Luka murmured thoughtfully. “So the Church of Ilias may have lied about Remina?”

“Hah! The Church is run by a bunch of politicians who lie about nearly everything!” Po snorted. “Does it really surprise you they’d feed everyone a bunch of baloney about what really happened there? If only I could get to Remina, I know I could figure out what really happened! But, sadly, reaching Hellgondo is impossible these days, unless you have magic or wings. If you plan to go there, you’ll need one of those, too, my boy.”

“R-Really? That could be a problem. I thought I could simply take a ship...” Luka said, concerned. Po shook his head.

“No port to make landfall in, boy,” he explained. “Whole place’s surrounded by sheer cliffs. Used to be a giant monster called Garuda would carry people to and from Hellgondo, but she vanished when Remina happened. Probably killed, poor thing.”

“I see... I'll have to think of something,” Luka nodded, mulling over what Po told him. “Thank you. Your information was priceless.”

“You’re welcome, young Hero,” Po smiled. “And... if you ever make it to Hellgondo, check Remina out, will you? Look for some kind of evidence. Something, anything. Collect and bring me anything you may find that could be relevant. I know you have your own quest, but you may be my final chance to figure out what happened there. At the very least, I want to put my own past to rest.”

“Rest assured that I will,” Luka nodded with determination. “Now I too want to figure out what happened. Thank you, Mr. Po.” Looking down to Tyris, who was still hugging him and pouting from the lack of attention, he ruffled her hair again. “And you behave now, will ya? Don’t give Po any grief. I should be back in a few days. I’m looking forward to seeing your first masterpiece.”

“Okay!” Tyris nodded happily. “You’ll be amazed by my work, I promise!”

“Hahaha... I don’t doubt I will,” Luka smiled as he untangled himself from her hug. “Well then, I’ll be going!”

With that, he waved at the blacksmith and the Dragon girl, and left the shop. As he closed the door behind himself and started down the road leading to Iliasburg’s gates, he began thinking.

Po appeared to think there was more than met the eye to the ‘Slaughter of Remina’, and Luka was inclined to agree. He wondered if Alice knew anything about it, being a monster herself. She was too young to actually have been there, but perhaps she knew someone who had more detailed information about it.

He resolved to ask her about the subject as they traveled to Happiness Village. He definitely wanted to shed light on this obscure mystery.

----

A few minutes later, Luka joined Alice on the road leading east towards Happiness Village. The monster had been impatiently waiting for him, and upon seeing him, she glared in annoyance.

“There you are! What took you so long?!” she addressed him, annoyed. “You said you’d be done in a couple minutes at most!”

“Yes, sorry for making you wait,” Luka apologized. “It’s my fault. I got involved in an interesting discussion with Po, and it got me thinking. In fact, I have a few questions that I hope you may be able to answer as we travel.”

“Questions for me, you say?” Alice asked, curiosity replacing her annoyance. Luka appeared to be unusually serious, and it seemed as if something was genuinely troubling him.

“Let’s get a move on, first,” the boy suggested. “I’ll speak with you as we walk. I’d rather be well out of earshot of humans before we start. The subject may be a bit touchy.”

Now very curious, Alice decided to let his lateness slide. Whatever had caused it seemed to have his full attention and concentration, and she couldn’t help but wonder what had gotten him so worked up all of a sudden. Nodding to the boy, she began moving east alongside him, towards the nearby woods. Moving quickly, they soon put distance between themselves and Iliasburg, approaching the eastern forest. As they reached the tree line, Alice finally broke the silence they had been walking in, her curiosity getting the best of her.

“So... what happened at the blacksmith?” she asked him. Luka looked at her briefly, seemingly gauging his words.

“Well... I dropped off my damaged sword, as per the agreement I had with Po,” he replied. “He said he should begin working on it in a few days. Also, Tyris gave me a gift... it’s probably stolen, but it was so pretty, and Tyris looked so hopeful giving it to me, that I took it anyway.”

“Huh. Thief Hero, now? Your career keeps getting weirder and weirder,” Alice commented ironically, then held up a hand as she saw him start protesting. “I jest, you fool. Sheesh, you are so easily provoked... so what was the gift?”

“Well... this,” Luka replied, biting back a scathing remark that was about to leave his lips and instead eliciting to be polite. Stopping, he reached in his pocket, produced the pouch Tyris had given him, and extracted the red orb from it. Alice’s eyes widened upon seeing it.

“That’s...!” she gasped. Luka gave her a questioning glance.

“Do you know what it is?” he asked her. Alice gave him a thoughtful gaze, then her eyes moved to the gem he was holding, which was shining quietly in the morning light.

“I do, in fact,” she murmured, thinking. “I just didn’t expect to find one of those in this place. Hm...” Looking up at him, she briefly appeared to struggle with a decision, then seemed to make up her mind and nodded. “This is a monster treasure, an important artifact. Normally, I wouldn’t entrust it to a human, but seeing how there’s only one of them... I’ll leave it in your care.” Her gaze hardened slightly. “Understand that I’m placing exceptional trust in you. This orb really is that important. But, I think I can rely on you to keep it safe. Be honored that I find you worthy enough to guard it.”

“It's a monster treasure, eh?” Luka murmured as he looked at the red orb faintly reflecting the daylight in his palm. He felt slightly intimidated knowing he was holding an important item, but at the same time he felt strangely proud that Alice would entrust it to him. Looking up to her, he nodded decisively. “I’ll keep it on me at all times. The only way someone will take it is by prying it from my cold, dead hands.”

“Ah, there’s no need to go that far,” Alice replied, slightly alarmed. “Only monsters and humans with extremely strong monster blood could use it, anyway, and it’s useless without the other orbs in the set. But... I appreciate how seriously you’re taking this task.” She smiled slightly. “It’s really a shame you aren’t a monster, or I’d strive to make you one of my personal guards. You may be a bit gullible and too easy to exploit, but you’re certainly a serious worker.”

“Thank you. I always appreciate it when you genuinely praise me,” Luka nodded at her with a smile as he put the red orb away and resumed walking. “Especially since I get the feeling it’s a rare thing.”

“Heh... you aren’t offended by me calling you gullible and easily used?” Alice asked with a lopsided smile as she followed him. Luka shook his head negatively.

“It’s true. I may not like it, but denying it would be foolish,” he admitted. “I try to do my best, but I lack experience still. That’s why I look up to Thermidor - and you as well - for advice on things. You both can teach me many things.”

“Mmmm. I like how you think,” the white-haired Echidna nodded approvingly. “Always maintain an open mind. It’s not finding knowledge that’s hard, it’s allowing it to take root unimpeded in your mind. Prejudices can be a real problem when doing that. Which reminds me... what did that blacksmith tell you that got you so thoughtful?”

“Ahh... it concerns the ‘Slaughter of Remina’,” Luka replied. At those words, Alice abruptly stopped slithering, her expression clouding over. Noticing the sudden mood swing of his companion, Luka also stopped and shot her a questioning look. “If it’s too delicate a subject, I’ll drop it. You don’t have to talk about it if it displeases you.”

“...no, it’s all right,” Alice replied after a brief, hesitating pause. “But I’d like to know what you think of it first.”

“Honestly? I don’t know enough to form an opinion either way, so I’m going to hold off on that until I hear both sides of the story,” he replied. From the approving look in Alice’s eyes, he guessed he’d said the right thing and, encouraged, he continued. “I will say this, though: whatever happened, the Church’s version didn’t convince Po, and he used to live in Remina, so I’m inclined to give a lot of credit to his opinion.”

“That old man lived in Remina? Interesting,” Alice said, surprised. She then grew somber and gave Luka a serious look. “I’m relieved that you’re willing to hear the monsters’ side out on this one, because there’s one important thing that your Church left out of its reports.”

“I imagined that’d be the case,” Luka nodded. “What did they conveniently ‘forget’ to mention?”

“It’s true that all the humans in Remina were slaughtered overnight...” Alice replied quietly. “...but, what no one is told, is that all the monsters were killed, as well.”

“...what?” Luka said, stunned. “But if that’s true, then...”

“The truth is, no one knows what happened in Remina,” Alice shook her head. “Not even the Monster Lord knows, and it happened basically in her back yard. All that is known is that the previous day Remina bustled with activity, and the next day it was a burning ruin filled with corpses and smoke. Whatever attacked it did it so swiftly and brutally, neither humans nor monsters could fight back at all.”

“No way...” Luka murmured in shock. “Then who did it...?”

“I’d like to know that, myself,” Alice growled. “Many, many monsters would. And then we’d like to dismember the culprits and slowly roast them over a fire.”

“I can assure you that a lot of humans would cheerfully join you if the ones responsible were found,” Luka nodded. “Remina was a disaster for both sides... because of it, humans and monsters hate each other. I can’t help but think that whoever did this, did so on purpose...”

“That’s what we think, as well,” Alice nodded. “But with no leads to follow, finding the culprit is pretty hopeless.” Sighing deeply, the serpentine monster shook her head. “I don’t want to talk about this anymore. Can we just hurry to Happiness Village?”

“Yes. Sorry for upsetting you, and thank you for sharing your information with me,” Luka nodded. With that, the pair resumed marching, silence falling between them. For a while, neither spoke, both lost in their own thoughts. Then, as they passed a small pond, Alice was suddenly roused from her contemplation by something, and her eyes narrowed.

“Luka,” she called out. The boy stopped and gave her a questioning glance. She shot him a look of her own. “Normally, I wouldn’t do this, but just this once, I’ll give you advance warning. There were two bee-type monsters who picked up on your presence, and they had a brief scuffle while pursuing you. The one who lost and was driven away, unfortunately, was the reasonable one. I don’t recommend trying to negotiate with the one still pursuing you. She’s an especially aggressive variety, and would most likely keep you as her personal semen slave if you lose. Consider this an exceptional warning.”

With those words, she vanished, leaving a stunned Luka in the middle of the small dirt road leading to Happiness Village. Moments later, he began to hear a buzzing sound coming from the trees to his left, and turned towards them, drawing Angel Halo. Alice had never given him advance warning like this before, and she seemed very serious, so he decided to err on the side of caution and have his weapon ready.

As it turned out, it was a sensible choice. Suddenly, a large Bee Girl burst through the foliage ahead, immediately zeroing in on him and attempting to tackle him. With a shout, Luka dove to the side, managing to narrowly avoid the flying body check. As he rolled to his feet again, he adopted a crouching stance. This monster was definitely as aggressive as Alice claimed it to be, and Luka cautiously circled around her as he took her appearance in. She was a little smaller than the bee-type monsters he’d seen in some of his mother’s books, but her body seemed leaner and more solid. Soft-looking black-and-yellow body hair covered her limbs, as well.

“MALE... UNBAPTIZED, TOO,” the monster buzzed. She then took an aggressive stance. “GIVE SEMEN, NOW!”

“Wait a minute...” Luka protested. The Bee Girl shook her head negatively.

“NO. GIVE SEMEN!” she repeated. Luka shook his head, his eyes narrowing.

“No way. This is the kind of attitude I hate in both humans and monsters!” he shot back, gripping his sword tightly. The bee monster buzzed in annoyance.

“THEN I RAPE YOU!” she concluded, and began her attack, lunging at him again. Once more, Luka rolled to his side, dodging the incoming monster, but as he got up, his eyes flashed in anger.

“So this is how it’s going to be?” he growled. “You’re no better than a common mugger if you act this way! You need to be taught a lesson!”

With that, Luka began his own assault. With a quick step, he closed in and slashed at the Bee Girl twice, connecting both times with solid blows and causing her to reel back from the attacks, blinking in confusion.

“WHAT...? HUMAN... STRONG. WHY?” she buzzed, unsure. Luka didn’t reply and instead pressed the attack, aiming an overhead blow to her head and following up with another to her left arm. The Bee Girl attempted to defend herself, but the furious Luka didn’t let up and, not allowing the stumbling monster any time to recover, rapidly lashed out with two more attacks before she could react. He then jumped backwards and crouched slightly, grabbing Angel Halo with both hands.

“What happens now is entirely your fault! Think about what you did wrong!” he shouted, and rapidly stepped in, aiming a slash at her neck. “Demon Decapitation!”

As he connected with the blow, the Bee Girl gave a panicked cry, and her body began to unravel the same way the Earthworm Girl’s did. Within instants, where the monster stood a simple bee remained, buzzing slightly in confusion. After a few moments, the sealed monster flew off.

Luka stood still in a battle-ready position for a few more instants, taking deep breaths to calm himself, then sighed and relaxed, straightening up again and sheathing Angel Halo. He grimaced slightly: perhaps he’d been too harsh with the Bee Girl, but her sudden assault, refusal to stop and talk, and aggressive behavior had annoyed him, and he found himself lashing out at her with all his strength. Wiping some sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand, he turned around, and stopped abruptly as he found himself face to face with Alice.

“...Impressive...” Alice murmured as she watched him with a look of interest on her face. “So this is what you can do when you’re going all out. That monster didn’t even get a chance to attack.” She smiled slightly. “You’re good. You’re still far from being as powerful as Granberia, of course, but the potential is definitely there. You just might become as strong as a Heavenly Knight, with enough training.”

“Ah... maybe I overdid it a little, though?” Luka said, scratching his head in embarrassment. “I kind of just... beat that Bee Girl up, and I feel a little guilty about it.”

“She attacked first, and refused to listen,” Alice replied. “I think you were within your right to react this way. Perhaps this lesson will teach her the value of not mindlessly rushing her target in such an aggressive fashion.”

“I still think I may have been too harsh, but if you say so...” Luka replied dubiously. He then looked at his hands, a slight expression of surprise on his face. “But I have to admit, it feels good to be able to just let loose without having to worry about causing permanent damage to my opponent. It felt kinda... exciting.”

“Don’t let Alma hear you say that, or you’ll be sorry,” Alice commented with a raised eyebrow. At Luka’s questioning glance, she clarified. “Alma Elma. The Succubus Queen. She seems to find fighting an exciting activity, too. Only, in her case, she means it literally. It greatly arouses her, and being near her at that point would be very hazardous to the health of delicious little boys like yourself.”

“I'll, uh, keep that in mind,” Luka nodded nervously. He then gave Alice a speculative look. “Say, you know an awful lot about important people. Just how important are you, yourself?”

“That’s for me to know, and for you to find out,” Alice teased him. At his annoyed look, she waved a hand at him. “Don’t get so mad. I’ll tell you all about me... eventually. I’d like to observe you a little longer before that.”

Luka glared at her a bit longer, then sighed resignedly. “Fine. I suppose it’s your right to decide when and how to tell me about yourself. I’ll be patient.”

“Hmmm. That’s how I like you... patient and obedient,” Alice teased him. Then, she turned around and slithered off along the road. “Come on, now. Let’s go. I can’t wait to try the Happiness Honey at its source, and that annoying insect delayed us long enough. It’ll probably take us all of tomorrow to get there.”

Nodding, Luka fell in line behind her, and together, the pair resumed their journey towards Happiness Village.

----

The pair reached Happiness Village the next afternoon. The rest of the journey had been uneventful, as no more monsters had attacked. Both Luka and Alice had been fairly quiet during the trip, still thinking about Remina and what they knew of the events that transpired thirty years before. Occasionally, they chatted while walking, but they carefully kept away from sensitive subjects. They already had enough to think about, after all.

As the pair reached the village, they heard a commotion and what sounded like wing beats ahead. Luka blinked, then looked at his side and saw that Alice had disappeared. Frowning, he advanced past the village’s gates, and headed towards where the commotion came from.

As he entered a clearing in the settlement’s center, he saw what had caused the noises. A Harpy was hovering in the middle of the plaza, attempting to seize a young boy’s arm with her talons. Luka’s eyes narrowed as he drew Angel Halo and rushed towards the scene.

“Hey!” he shouted as he drew near. “Leave that kid alone! What’s with this cradle-robbing? I didn’t know Harpies kidnapped kids!”

“Huh? Who are you?” the Harpy murmured as she spotted him. “I haven’t seen you before. Are you a traveler?”

“Yeah, I am. But that’s beside the point!” Luka replied. “Just what are you up to? Let that kid go!”

The Harpy appeared to size Luka up briefly, then smiled, pleased, and suddenly let go of the young boy’s arm. Turning towards Luka, she licked her lips.

“Fine, I’ll let him go,” she replied. “I’ll kidnap you instead ♪”

“Is this why Happiness Village hasn’t contacted Iliasburg recently...?” Luka muttered, then fell in a fighting stance. “Never mind, I have to drive this one away for now...”

Deciding to take the initiative, Luka quickly stepped in and attempted to hit the Harpy with a lunging attack. However, she suddenly took to the sky and flew out of range, catching him by surprise. He groaned in frustration.

“Hey! Flying off like that is cheating!” he protested. The Harpy gave him a confused look.

“Eh? I’m using my wings to fly. How is that cheating?” she asked, genuinely puzzled. Luka grimaced.

“Ugh, she has a point...” he muttered. “It’s still frustrating. I have to find a way to hit her...”

“Hahaha, if you won’t attack, I will ♪” the Harpy declared in a singsong voice. Sweeping in, she abruptly aimed for Luka’s pants, and the boy, taken aback by the attempt, barely managed to sway to the side and dodge. Pouting, the Harpy hovered out of reach again.

“Hey! What’s the big idea, aiming low?” Luka protested again, beginning to feel irritated with the Harpy. The feathered monster gave him an are-you-stupid look in response.

“Hm? I'm trying to take your clothes off, of course!” she replied matter-of-factly. “How can we mate if you’re still wearing them?”

“What the hell? You’re being way too forceful!” Luka shot back angrily. The Harpy ignored him, instead suddenly rising upward, and as Luka followed her movements, he winced and closed his eyes when she flew in front of the sun, blinded by its brightness. Seeing the opportunity, the Harpy immediately dove and crashed into him, sending him sprawling to the ground on his back. The flying monster immediately set about removing his pants once again, taking advantage of his dazed state, and, working quickly, managed to expose his penis to the air. She then straddled his legs, pinning them down.

“Hehe, a Harpy’s baby-making hole is amazing, you know?” she giggled as she attempted to move to a better position. In doing so, her feathers tickled his dick, causing it to stir and begin to harden involuntarily. “You’re going to love it. Come on, let’s mate ♪”

Luka, having recovered from the dazed state the sudden blow had put him in, attempted to struggle free, but found that his legs were firmly pinned down. He did, however, notice his sword arm was still free, and more importantly, the Harpy was so focused on his penis she was carelessly leaving herself in close proximity and open to attack. Seizing the opportunity, Luka gathered his strength and lashed out at the avian monster once, hitting her in the shoulder. With a surprised cry, the Harpy fell backwards and stumbled away from him, then quickly hovered out of reach again, confused.

“H-Huh? What’s this...?” she whined with a frown. “That sword... I really don’t like it. It makes me feel funny. I’m going home!”

With that, the unnerved Harpy took off and flew above the tree line, disappearing in short order. Luka scrambled to his feet and quickly pulled his pants up, then stood on guard in case the Harpy returned. Seeing that she’d apparently left for good, he sighed in relief and relaxed, sheathing Angel Halo. He then looked around, and spotted the boy he’d saved, hiding behind some logs. With a smile, he walked up to him.

“Ah, I see you’re all right,” he greeted him. Did you get hurt anywhere?” At the boy’s negative headshake, Luka nodded. “Good. You should return to your mother now. It’s probably not a good idea to stay outside today.”

The boy nodded back and turned around, running off to a nearby house. As he approached, the door opened and a woman came out of it and ran up to the child, hugging him with a relieved expression on her face. She briefly murmured something to the young boy, then motioned for him to go inside and approached Luka.

“Thank you for saving my son, kind traveler,” she greeted him. “I panicked and ran inside when that Harpy showed up, and when I realized he’d been left behind, it was too late already. If not for you...”

“Think nothing of it,” Luka replied with a wave of his hand, then his expression became serious. “With that said, what’s going on here? I don’t think Harpies commonly kidnap kids...”

“They’re from the nearby village,” another woman who’d come out of a different house spoke up. “There’s been a village of Harpies in the forest since before my Pa was alive, and maybe even before that. Our village’s named after them, I think.”

“Happiness Village, Harpy Village... of course,” Luka muttered. “But, if I remember what I was told back in Iliasburg, communications in this area have dwindled only recently, haven’t they?”

“Yeah, since they started kidnapping our men all the time,” another woman mentioned. Luka blinked, and for the first time realized that of the crowd of adults surrounding him, not one of them was male - only women. A suspicion began to form in his mind.

“They're only after men?” he asked. “Nothing else? Food, supplies?”

“Only men,” an elderly woman, who appeared to be the village chief, confirmed. “Pretty much everyone of working age has been spirited away, as you can see. We are at our wits' end here; without the men, no work can get done, and we cannot sell our Happiness Honey, which is the source of the village’s livelihood.”

“I see,” Luka murmured. “This could be a problem...”

“Say, young traveler,” the Elder asked him. “You seem to be very strong - you managed to drive that Harpy off, after all. Would you consider attempting to rescue our men?”

“Rescue, eh? Well...” Luka replied, somewhat dubious. Something about this whole situation felt off, as if he was missing something important that was right under his eyes, and he wasn’t too keen on committing himself until he figured out what it was. As he thought, Alice, who had joined him in her human form shortly after the fight ended, spoke up for the first time.

“Excuse me, but... are you telling me we’re the first travelers who passed through this village?” she inquired. The Elder shot her a confused look.

“Eh? Well, no. There were a few others,” she replied. Alice nodded.

“And did you ask them for assistance, as well?” she continued. The Elder’s eyes narrowed, but before she could reply, a nearby woman spoke up.

“Yeah, we did, and they went to the Harpy village to try and take the men back,” she said, missing the glare the older woman sent her way. Alice sighed, as if she had imagined that would be the answer.

“And... did they come back?” she asked, looking straight at the Elder. The old woman frowned and didn’t answer immediately, causing Luka’s eyes to narrow in suspicion as well. Then, with a sigh, the woman shook her head.

“No,” she replied. “Not one of them came back.”

“And I assume it just slipped your mind to mention this little detail, did it?” Alice sniped, sarcasm dripping from her voice. Turning to Luka, she waved at the gathered women with her hand. “There you have it. They’re just trying to use you, just like they used who knows how many other people... and if you fail to return, they’ll just ask someone else who has the misfortune to come to this village next. Do you really think people like these deserve help?”

“Well... It’s true they weren’t entirely truthful with me,” Luka admitted. “But, Alice, to be fair, they aren’t fighters. They can’t exactly walk into that Harpy village and reclaim their men, can they?” He then shook his head. “Even so... I think there’s more to this than just a string of kidnappings. I mean, Harpies are vegetarian... I don’t think they kidnapped so many men to eat them.” Turning around to the Elder, he nodded to her. “I’ll go to the Harpy village to investigate, and see what condition the kidnapped men are in. I’ll return as soon as possible. In the meanwhile, please don’t do anything inconsiderate.”

“Will you really help us?” a young woman asked, hopeful. “We’d be very grateful! But please, be careful!”

“Yes, do be careful,” an older, maternal-looking woman nodded. “We have sent enough promising young men to an unknown fate already. If at all possible, we’d like for this vicious cycle to stop. We are being no better than the Harpies, acting like this.”

“Don’t worry, I don’t intend to let myself be kidnapped,” Luka reassured them as he looked at the surrounding forest. “Now, then, would one of you be so kind as to show me which direction the Harpies’ village is in?”

“I’ll escort you as close to it as possible,” another young woman chimed in, looking fired up. “Your companion is right, we have been using travelers like you and sitting on our hands. We should be more active in this if we want our men back!”

“All right, but only as close as it’s safe for you,” Luka agreed. “Then you should come back here and wait for news. Don’t worry, I'll be back. I promise.”

“Thank you, young traveler,” the Elder said with a smile. “It’s nice to see that there’s still people with a heroic heart in this day and age.”

“Well, I am trying to become a Hero,” Luka admitted bashfully. “Although it’s turning out to be tougher than I imagined. But I guess anything that’s worth doing is worth spending effort on doing.”

“Indeed,” the elderly woman chuckled. “Well then, if you need anything from our village in preparation for our mission, feel free to take it, Hero. It’s the least we can do for you. And feel free to look around, as well. We will wait for news from you.”

With those words, the gathering of women dispersed, and they returned to their houses and shops. The young woman who had offered to escort Luka to the Harpy village, a pretty thing with red hair, green eyes and freckles, nodded at him and pointed at the village’s gates.

“I will wait for you at the gate, Hero,” she told him. “When you're ready, come see me. Or would you prefer to spend the day here and set out tomorrow?”

Luka pondered that and looked at the sky. It was still relatively early in the afternoon, so if the Harpies’ village was not too far, he might be able to reach it when the sun was still up. He looked at the girl.

“How long should it take to get there?” he asked her. She frowned as she looked at the sun and began counting on the tips of her fingers.

“Hmmm... we can get there sometime before sundown, I think,” she told him. “The Harpies tend to go sleep shortly after nightfall and wake up at dawn, so if you want to be unobserved, it may be better to wait until it’s dark...”

“No, that’ll be fine. I want to see their village when the sun’s still up,” he replied. "Well then... Alice, are you coming?”

“I think I’ll remain here,” she informed him. “Whatever you do, see to it that you hurry up. And try not to become a Harpy’s toy, now.”

“Thanks for the confidence vote,” he replied dryly. “Well then, don’t do anything weird. I’ll be back soon, I hope.”

With that, he nodded to the red-haired girl, and the two began walking towards the village’s gate. As they passed near the beehives where the village’s famous honey was produced, Luka saw one of the women who had spoken with him earlier - the matron-like one - observe the beehives with a pondering expression.

“...wonder if I could use bees as weapons?” he overheard her muttering to herself. She then shook her head. “Nah... that sounds like something out of some weird, messed up work of fiction...”

Bees as weapons? Luka thought as he and his temporary companion traveled out of hearing distance. I wonder where she got the idea in the first place...

----

As the pair walked down a small dirt road, Luka decided to ask a few more questions to his companion. There were still many blind spots in his view of the situation, and he wished to get as much information as he could.

“So, how long has this been going on?” he asked her. The freckled girl beside him was startled out of her own thoughts by his sudden question, then regained her composure and looked at him.

“You mean the kidnappings? Let me see,” she thought. “About two years, give or take. But it got especially bad recently, for some reason.”

“Hm... Two years, eh? I see,” he mused. He wasn’t sure if this had significance, but decided to keep it in mind. “Do you have any idea why they’re kidnapping men?”

“I don’t know... to eat them?” the girl replied, confused. “Whatever it is monsters do with humans?”

“I’m not too sure about that,” he told her. “Harpies don’t eat meat. They’re vegetarian, as I mentioned before. It seems unlikely to me they’d develop a taste for human flesh all of a sudden.”

“Huh... you have a point,” she murmured. She then looked at him. “Do you think they have an actual reason for kidnapping all our men?”

“That’s what I intend to find out,” he said. “It’s true that monsters tend to feed on human semen,” he continued, causing the girl next to him to blush at his bluntness, “but Harpies don’t feed exclusively on that. Something else is going on that they need all these men for. I keep feeling as if I’m missing something, like there’s some very obvious fact I should be thinking of... Ah, well. I’ll figure it out as I go.”

“So... you intend to just walk into the Harpies’ village and ask them?” she asked, hesitant. Luka gave her a lopsided smile.

“You’re perceptive,” he nodded. “Yeah, that’s what I had in mind. Someone once told me there’s merit in being direct. I’m applying that advice. I think I’ll be fine. If I can get their leader to talk with me, I think I can get all the answers I need.”

“That... sounds really reckless, if you’ll pardon my bluntness,” the girl said with a dubious look. Luka laughed, unoffended.

“Absolutely!” he agreed. “But I have the feeling that I won’t get much done if I don’t take a risk or two. That’s part of being a Hero, too.”

“I see,” the redhaired girl nodded. She then stopped near a large tree and pointed ahead. “We’re here. See those huge trees ahead? That’s where the Harpies live. This is as far as I have the courage to go. I’m sorry...”

“Don’t be. I’m the dumb, reckless Hero, after all. Go back to the safety of your village,” he reassured her. As the girl nodded and turned around to leave, he called out to her. “Hey, I haven’t caught your name. If you wouldn’t mind...?”

“I... I'll tell you when you come back,” the girl said after a brief pause. “So, come back safe now, okay? Don’t get caught!”

“It’s a deal, then,” Luka smiled with a wink. The girl blushed slightly as she smiled back, then ran off towards Happiness Village. Luka watched her go, then turned back towards the Harpy Village and took a deep breath.

It was time to get the ball rolling.

----

As Luka approached the Harpies’ town, he began to see winged forms fluttering about the tree tops. There were quite a few Harpies around, although their number was less than what he expected. Deciding that a direct approach was best, he kept walking, figuring he’d find a way to meet the monsters’ leader as he went.

It didn’t take long for the Harpies to notice the intruder. As he walked towards the center of the treetop village, a Harpy with brownish hair and brown feathers landed in front of him, followed by a smaller, younger Harpy with pink tied-up hair and pink feathers.

“Hm? Who are you?” the older Harpy asked Luka, blinking. “I have never seen you around the village before.”

“Ah, hello,” he politely greeted her. “I’m actually here to see your leader, if at all possible. It’s a matter of great importance, and I would like to discuss it with her.”

“Oh, so you’re a traveler,” the older Harpy said, surprised. “We don’t get as many lately... but even if you’re here to see Queen Sophie, she’s very busy. Why don’t you play with us, instead?”

“I’d love to, but I’m serious when I say I have to see her at once,” Luka replied with an apologetic look on his face. “I’d appreciate your kindness if you helped me meet her.”

“Hmmm...” the brown-feathered Harpy hummed as she regarded him with a thoughtful look. Reaching a decision, she nodded. “All right. You’re an odd human, coming in like this without fear or worry and being so polite. The Queen really might want to hear what you have to say.” Pointing her left wing at a large tree with a house on top, she motioned for him to proceed. “Queen Sophie is usually in there. You came here just in time to see her before the whole village turns in for the night. Go and do whatever it is you came here to do. Just don’t start any trouble or you’ll be sorry!”

“Trouble is what I came here to prevent, so I’ll certainly not start any,” Luka reassured her. “Thank you for hearing me out instead of assaulting me. I’ll remember your kindness.”

With a courteous nod, Luka left, walking towards the tall tree the Harpy pointed him towards. As he went, the smaller Harpy followed him with her eyes, then suddenly spoke up.

“Hey, sis... I like that boy,” she murmured quietly. The older Harpy looked at her with surprise.

“Hm? Why didn’t you say so sooner?” she chided her. “Well, let’s see how things go. Depending on what Queen Sophie says, he may still be available later, you know? Then we can see about making him your first mate.”

“Hmm-mmm,” the pink-haired Harpy nodded, watching Luka’s retreating form a little longer. Then, she and her sister spread their wings and took off, returning to their home.

----

As he approached the tree, Luka noticed there seemed to be a rope ladder hanging from it. He presumed it was to allow humans to visit the Queen’s abode, since Harpies clearly had no use for a ladder. He certainly didn’t mind its presence, since climbing the great tree bare-handed would have been a major nightmare. He never found climbing an especially attractive activity.

Grabbing the rope ladder, he tugged on it a couple times to be sure it was safe to climb, then began scaling it. As he went up, he looked behind himself, taking in the sight of the Harpy Village from an advantageous position. He had to admit the Harpies built themselves a nice treetop town: their wooden houses looked very cozy and comfortable. He noticed a few Harpies hovering nearby, looking at him, but it appeared as if they didn’t intend to disturb him for now. The Harpy he’d spoken with had to have informed them he was here to see the Queen. He made a mental note to thank her for it later, as she probably saved him a lot of grief in doing so.

Moving quickly, he reached the top of the ladder and pulled himself up on the wooden platform surrounding the Queen Harpy’s house. As he did, he noticed two Harpies standing near the door. Guards, he guessed. Makes sense. This is a Queen we’re talking about, after all.

As he approached, the guards nodded at Luka and moved slightly, allowing him passage. He sighed in relief: it appeared the Queen knew of his presence and decided to hear him out. Returning a courteous nod to the guards, he stepped through and inside the treetop house. He found himself in an antechamber, with a doorframe on the other side, covered by a tent. Taking a deep breath, he prepared himself to meet the Harpies’ ruler, then he approached the tent, pushed it aside with one hand, and stepped through.

As he entered the room behind the chamber, he looked around in surprise. He’d expected a throne room; what he found instead was much like a common house’s living room, with couches, chairs, tables and a few hanging tapestries. The latter caused him to raise an eyebrow; it appeared the Queen appreciated human art.

As he further looked around, his eyes fell on a figure standing near a window, partially covered by shadow. The figure turned towards him when his eyes fell on her, and took a few steps towards him. As it came into view, illuminated by the lamps hanging on the house’s walls, he froze, staring.

The figure was a Harpy, but she was different from the others. She was considerably taller, with very soft, almost fur-like feathers. She had a striking combination of blue hair and deep green eyes, with a single purple feather plume standing up from her forehead, as if it was a regal crown itself. Her wings were also purple-colored, while her legs were covered in soft pink feathers. The elaborate circlet and elegant silk shirt she wore, along with her necklace and bracelets, made it very obvious she was of high standing.

Luka instinctively knelt as he felt a distinct air of royalty come from her. The act appeared to meet with the Harpy’s approval, as she smiled at him and motioned for him to stand. He complied, bowing slightly as a sign of thanks.

“So you are the traveler who boldly walked in our village and wished to speak with me...” she murmured in a soft, low tone as she regarded Luka speculatively. “I am Sophie, the Queen of this Harpy tribe. And you are...?”

“I am Luka, a wandering Hero in training, Your Highness,” he replied. Seeing her frown, he added, “Please do not think badly of me for referring to myself as a Hero. I do not associate myself with the Church of Ilias and its followers. Rather, I simply travel the world and help those in need, be they human or monster.”

“I see. I must admit I was alarmed when you claimed to be a Hero,” she admitted. “But you seem to be courteous and well-mannered, unlike those barbarians who claim that title for themselves. I will hear you out. I assume you wish to discuss something with me?”

“Yes, Your Highness,” Luka nodded. “It concerns the nearby human village.” At that, the Queen’s expression darkened again, and Luka was quick to continue. “I am not here to judge - merely to understand, and maybe help mediate. The villagers are under the mistaken impression that your kind kidnaps men to eat them, but from what I know, Harpies only eat fruits, vegetables and other such food. I doubt there’s any truth in the village’s claims, but admittedly, I can’t think of any reason for you to gather men, except food. I assume you do so to have a steady supply of human semen to eat?”

“...you really don’t know?” the Queen asked, in a tone halfway between surprise and amusement. “Well... you are fairly young, so perhaps a modicum of ignorance is to be expected. But you seem fairly knowledgeable about monsters for one so young. How is that?”

“I was raised by a monster for a period of my life, after my mother died from a plague,” Luka explained. “We... have a complicated relationship, but I consider her as family now. I learned a great deal from her about monsters, and since I had to provide her with food due to her being an Undead-type monster who need lifeforce to survive, I learned quite a bit about monster feeding habits, as well.”

“Ah, I see,” the Queen nodded. “I think I understand why you don’t seem to make the connection. Monsters of that type, after all, only need men to feed.” The Queen gave him a wry smile as she crossed her wings before her. “But we aren’t kidnapping those men for food. We need them for mating. Without them to fertilize our eggs, we cannot have children, and would die off.”

“...eh...? C-Children?” Luka blinked, then his eyes widened and he slapped himself as he realized what he’d been missing all this time. “Of course! There are no male monsters... so monsters need human males to reproduce! I got so used to the monsters I met only taking semen for food that it completely slipped my mind that’s not all they'd need it for! So that’s what that Harpy in Happiness Village meant when she talked about mating... I wasn’t paying attention, or I’d have realized it right away...”

“Now you understand,” Queen Sophie nodded with a smile. “So you see, we need human males. But due to your religion, men aren’t quite willing to mate with monsters, so we unfortunately must resort to kidnapping. It’s not something I am proud of, but... as the Queen of the tribe, I have to look out for my subjects’ well-being. Even if I have misgivings, I have to ensure our survival.” Turning towards the window, she motioned to the village outside with her wing. “With that said, I assure you the kidnapped men are cared for and kept safe and happy. We would never dream of harming the fathers of our children, after all. We aren’t savages.”

“I believe you,” Luka told her. “You strike me as a fair and reasonable leader. But... a lot of those men had families in the human village. Surely, since Harpies value family themselves, you can understand the pain and worry their disappearances caused...?”

At that, the Queen looked down, depressed. Luka winced: the Harpy leader seemed to be truly disheartened by his words, and he could tell that she also thought about that, and was genuinely torn by it.

“I am aware of that,” she murmured quietly. “But what else can I do? We need to increase our numbers, or we will wither away and die. I would welcome any other solution, but negotiating with humans is impossible... their religion makes it nearly hopeless to even approach them without being killed, much less talk.”

“That is true,” Luka nodded, seeing her point. He quietly thought for a few seconds, then nodded with decision. Giving a determined look at the Queen, he raised a hand to his chest. “In that case, let me negotiate an agreement with the humans. They should listen to me, and with me as the go-between, they may come to realize you’re simply trying to survive and are open to reasonable agreements. I’ll also make sure they don’t try to take advantage of you with excessive requests... of course, I will ask you to be reasonable, as well, but I don’t think you’re the type to try and take advantage of a situation.”

“You would do that for us...? You’re a strange Hero. But I appreciate your generosity,” the Queen Harpy replied with a small smile. “I... believe I will trust you, for the time being. Please, young Hero... do not let me down. I’m placing my faith in you with this.”

“Of course, Your Highness,” Luka replied with a bow. “I will not fail you, no matter the amount of effort it’ll take me. I promise you will be pleased by the results.”

“Mmmm... I have a good feeling about you,” she nodded. “You said your name was Luka, right? Well then, Hero Luka, I hereby authorize you to negotiate peace terms with the nearby human village on my behalf. All I and my people ask is that we be allowed to have men for mating... and if at all possible, that they be allowed to see the families they built in this village over time.”

“That sounds reasonable,” Luka nodded. “I will let the human village’s Elder know, and return with her own terms. I’ll try to negotiate something favorable for you. At some point, though, you and the Elder will likely have to meet in person. Such things need personal involvement.”

“Of course,” Queen Sophie nodded. “When the time comes, I will certainly negotiate in person. But for the time being, I will leave it to you. A monster’s presence would just unnerve the humans right now, I fear.”

“Unfortunately, that’s true,” Luka agreed. “Well then, I’ll be leaving at once.”

“Right now? It will be night soon,” the Queen said. “You’re welcome to stay in our village until morning. Of course, I will order that you not be disturbed. You are my guest and my representative, right now. It would not do for one of my subjects to kidnap and rape you, after all.”

“Ah... thank you for your generous protection,” Luka nodded. Thinking briefly, he decided to accept the Queen’s offer. Refusing would have been rude, and he was admittedly tired from the tension and the lack of rest. “In that case, I will gladly take you up on your offer, Your Highness. I am admittedly worn out from this day’s events.”

“I will have you escorted to your room, then,” the Queen Harpy nodded, flapping her wing and producing a sharp crack. Immediately, one of the Harpies standing outside entered the room. “And I will have my subjects know you are to be left alone. By the way,” she added, “would you happen to be the warrior who engaged Elyse in battle today in the human village when she was attempting to seize a young boy?”

“Ah... yes, Your Highness,” Luka admitted with a grimace. “I’m sorry, but I could not let her kidnap that boy before my eyes.”

“I thought you would lie about this, but you didn’t. I appreciate your honesty,” she replied, sounding genuinely impressed. “Do not worry, I harbor you no ill will for that. You simply did what you thought was right. And Elyse was not hurt, so there was no harm done. I trust that thanks to you, such actions will soon become unnecessary. Well then, you are dismissed. Have a good night’s rest, Hero.”

“Yes. I will do my absolute best,” Luka stated, bowing deeply. He then turned around and left the Queen’s house, escorted by the Harpy guard. The Queen was left alone, a thoughtful expression on her face.

“That young man is very interesting,” she mused. “Even if he were to fail, he’d be a great addition to the tribe. I wonder if he will really succeed... If he did...”

Lost in her thoughts, the Queen Harpy slowly turned around and headed towards her room. Perhaps sleeping on today’s events would leave her with a clearer mind in the morning.

----

The next morning, Luka woke up at dawn. As he left the room the Queen Harpy had prepared for him, a single cabin on top of a small tree near her own house, he noticed the Harpies were all up already. He felt slightly weirded out; he was used to being one of the first people awake at any given morning, and it was somewhat odd to be in the middle of an active village so soon after having woken up.

As he looked around, he spotted some of the kidnapped men looking at him from the nearby treetop houses. They seemed to be observing him, and a few even waved at him, but none made any attempt to get closer. Luka found himself wondering the reason for that strange behavior.

As Luka quickly slid down the ladder leading to the cabin, he decided to stop by and greet the Queen before setting out and returning to Happiness Village. He felt it best to be polite to the Harpy leader, since she had been so kind as to trust him on the current situation. His decision made, he began walking towards the Queen’s house, but was surprised when the regent herself suddenly swept in and landed before him. As the Queen straightened herself, he bowed his head towards her.

“Good morning, Your Highness,” he greeted her. “I was just coming to pay my respects before leaving for Happiness Village. Also, it seems the men are rather shy about approaching me. Why is that?”

“I saw,” she nodded with a small smile. “I thought I would save you another climb on the rope ladder and come greet you myself. As for the men, they are not sure they should speak with you. It is... complicated, but mostly, they are afraid of how their families would react in knowing they have another family here.” She nodded to him again in invitation. “At any rate, it is almost time for my morning stroll. Would you mind walking with me to the village’s edge?”

“Thank you for your kindness,” Luka nodded at her. “I’d be honored by your company.”

“Such a polite young man,” Queen Sophie chuckled. “I rather like you. Come, let us talk.”

With that, the pair began walking towards the Harpy village’s edge. As they walked, the Queen briefly observed Luka’s face, seemingly thinking. Luka noticed her examination, but refrained from saying anything. He was fairly sure the Queen would address him whenever she would be ready to say what was in her mind.

He was right. After spending some time observing him and thinking, the Queen addressed him as they walked.

“So then, Hero Luka,” she began. “What expectations do you have of this negotiation you are going to start today?”

“Honestly? I expect it will be complicated,” Luka admitted, frowning. “I will have to do a lot of talking and persuading to get the human side to even consider the possibility of a deal, let alone agree, and I’m sure issues will pop up all the time. Of course, I may be wrong and things may go smoothly, in which case I won’t complain. But as they say, it’s better to be safe than sorry, so I’m getting ready for an uphill battle, so to speak.”

“A good mindset,” the Queen Harpy nodded. “That way, if something unpleasant happens, you will be ready to deal with it. Then, do you believe you will be successful?”

“I know I will be successful, Your Highness,” Luka replied with a determined light in his eyes as he raised a fist. “I promised you’ll be pleased by my results, and I have no intention of failing you. I will bring you good news, no matter how long it may take me to do so. If I have to sideline my own journey for a while, then so be it.”

“Then I will eagerly await news of your success,” the Queen nodded with a pleased smile. “Somehow, I feel as if I can rely on you. You possess a rare charisma, Hero Luka. I foresee a bright future ahead of you. You will be an important person one day.”

“I find it hard to imagine myself as someone important, Your Highness,” Luka replied, slightly embarrassed and somewhat pleased by the Harpy’s praise. “I just do what I can to make this world a better place.”

“You mentioned a journey, did you not?” the Queen Harpy asked him. “What is it you’re hoping to accomplish during it?”

“You will probably think me overly ambitious for this, but... my goal is to help bring peace between humans and monsters all across the world,” Luka replied hesitantly. “To this end, I have decided to travel the human lands for a while, so that I can gain experience and see the world, before setting off for Hellgondo. I’d like to meet the Monster Lord and get an idea of what kind of person she is. I do not believe she’s an evil fiend like the Church claims her to be... but I can’t be sure of that, and I wish to see for myself whether it’s possible to negotiate with her or not.”

“Having a clear goal in life is not a bad thing per se,” the Queen Harpy commented. “Just be sure not to let that goal become an obsession. That is a road best left untraveled.”

“I know, and I will try to be careful,” Luka smiled at her as they reached the village’s edge. “Thank you for your advice, Your Highness. Well then... it’s time for me to go and start working. I will be back as soon as possible. By your leave?”

“Of course. You are dismissed,” the Queen motioned for him to go. Luka bowed deeply, then turned around and left the village at a brisk pace, thinking about his next move. Queen Sophie’s eyes followed him until he disappeared, then she sighed and turned around, falling deep in thought as she resumed her stroll through her village. She herself still had much to consider.

----

Later in the day, Happiness Village was buzzing with activity as the village’s women took care of their daily routines, or at least as much of them as they could handle with the men missing. Some women were collecting honey, while others were making repairs to damaged houses. Near the gate, two of the larger, tougher looking women were on the lookout for anything suspicious.

As the women standing guard looked around, one of them picked up a figure coming out of the forest from the Harpy village’s direction. She tensed, ready to sound the alarm in case of another Harpy raid, but relaxed when she saw the figure had no wings and was walking. As she looked at the figure with curiosity, her companion elbowed her to draw her attention.

“Hey... isn’t that the boy Hero who went off to the Harpies’ place yesterday?” she asked her. The other one blinked, looking more closely at the incoming figure.

“Eh...? You’re right. He actually came back? I wonder if he has good news. I don’t see the men with him-” she started, but was interrupted when a young woman - the same red-haired girl who had escorted Luka to the monster village the previous day - barged in the conversation suddenly, looking anxious.

“The Hero is back?! Are you sure?!” she asked frantically. Squinting, she looked at the direction the two older women had been observing, and upon seeing the approaching figure, a delighted cry escaped her lips. “It’s true! The Hero is back! Elder! Elder!”

As the girl ran off, the two women exchanged a look and chuckled, their bad mood at seeing the Hero return without the village men dissipating a bit before the younger woman’s exuberance.

“I think someone’s sweet on the young Hero,” the first one said with a wry smile. “Should we warn him?”

“Nah, leave it alone,” the other waved her hand dismissively. “Whatever happens, happens. Ah, to be young again...” With that, the two women started gossiping, observing the returning Hero’s approach. After all, few things could distract the human mind in difficult times like a rumor or two.

A few minutes later, a crowd had formed in the center of Happiness Village, with Luka as its focal point. Along with the Elder and the guardswomen, nearly the entire female population had gathered. The red-haired girl was present, fidgeting to the side, and Alice had also showed up. All those present seemed anxious to hear the news.

“I see you have returned, Hero,” the Elder greeted Luka. “Good to see you’re safe. So, have you found the men?”

“I have,” Luka nodded, “and I'm pleased to report they're all alive and well, but the situation is more complicated than I thought at first. I spoke at length with the Queen Harpy.”

“And the result was...?” the Elder encouraged him. All around, the crowd shifted anxiously.

“Well... first of all, you have to understand why the Harpies started kidnapping men,” Luka began in a calm tone. He then began to explain to the gathered human women all that the Queen Harpy had relayed him - their dwindling numbers, the desperate decision to take men forcefully so they could avoid dying off, and the doubts the Queen had expressed over her course of action. Through the narration, everyone remained quiet, listening intently. Even Alice seemed to be listening very closely to his report. Luka made sure to emphasize that the Harpies were not acting out of malice, but out of the simple need to survive.

“...and that’s all I can say about the situation,” Luka concluded his explanation. “I persuaded the Queen Harpy to give me a chance so I could try and somehow find a common ground that both sides could meet on. She does not like what her tribe has to do to survive any more than you do, but she has no choice - as a ruler, she has to think of her subjects’ needs first. If she'd had her choice in the matter, she’d rather have struck a deal with you all. It’s just that, well... being monsters, she and her kind aren’t usually listened to when they show up near human villages, you know?”

“I see,” the Elder murmured. “I thought the Harpies were just doing what they were doing out of malice, but it seems we may have misunderstood them. It’s true that with the state of the world after the Slaughter of Remina, relationships between humans and monsters have soured, and more often than not, meetings between the two immediately initiate hostilities. I cannot blame her for thinking negotiations would be a waste of time. Most humans would, indeed, attack first and ask questions later...”

“Then, are you willing to negotiate?” Luka asked hopefully. “All the Harpies ask is for the opportunity to breed. In exchange, they are willing to hear out your requests and seriously consider them. Also... I should probably warn you that several of the men seem to have families in the Harpy Village, as well. You may have to learn how to get along with each other, but I think all that’s needed is an open mind and willingness to talk.”

“That may complicate things a little, yes,” the Elder nodded. Looking around, she looked at the women gathered around Luka. “What do you all think? I would like your input on this. One at a time, please; I've only got so many ears.”

“If the Hero says we should negotiate, I’m willing to do it,” the red-haired young woman immediately spoke up, nodding with decision. “I don’t think he’d trick us. I think we should trust him. If anyone can solve this crisis, it’s him.”

The Elder gave the girl a knowing look, but said nothing, merely acknowledging her opinion. Looking around for more, she saw two women raise their hands - one being a beekeeper, the other being one of the town guards. She nodded towards the guard first.

“I agree with Silvina,” the guardswoman stated. “The Hero walked into danger intentionally for our sake and returned with the first news of our men in a long time, as well as an offer of peace. I’d rather give this a try for the promise of peace than keep living in fear of the next Harpy kidnapping. As things are now, we’ll die off ourselves... The only way in which both sides can survive is if we strike a deal. And... to be honest, I understand where the Harpies are coming from. If I was in their shoes - er, feathers, I guess? - I’d probably resort to desperate measures, too.”

Nodding to the guard, the Elder then pointed to the beekeeper. The woman made a dubious face as she crossed her arms.

“I understand where both Silvina and Eudie come from, but can we really trust these monsters?” she argued. “For all we know, they will pretend to negotiate and then suddenly bam, betray us and do something unpleasant. I’m not sure I can trust a monster...”

"Why should I have to share my husband with some monster?" another woman in the crowd demanded. "We spent years growing together, working together, raising our son together, and you expect me to just calmly accept it when some feathered tart swoops down and drags him off to make her eggs hatch?" A few more women nodded in agreement as well.

Luka had to think carefully about his response, but he could tell the crowd needed to be taken charge of before their anger could snowball into something uncontrollable - he'd seen that happen a time or two with his mother, after all. "Ladies, ladies, please," he began, clearing his throat firmly so as to hook their attention. "This is going to be a point where the Harpies are going to have to bend, as well. These are negotiations, not a set of demands handed down by the monsters."

Seeing that he had their attention, he continued. "They've certainly made a bad impression, and they're aware of that; the Queen Harpy did say she wants to strike a deal, after all. I'm sure that if you're willing to talk to them about it, they'd be willing to apologize and meet your own requests, to an extent."

“But... how can we be sure their word can be trusted? So far, all we know is a bunch of kidnappers and rapists, no different than the stories we've heard of other monsters,” another voice spoke up. Luka nodded at the person who’d spoken, a slim, black-haired woman with brown eyes.

“Would you trust me, then?” Luka spoke up. “I’m willing to act as the go-between in these negotiations, so that both sides are treated fairly. I’ll make sure nothing untoward happens at any time. My goal is a lasting agreement, not a deal in name only. You can trust me. I’ll make sure both sides get their day’s worth out of this agreement.”

“Well...” the woman replied slowly, looking in Luka’s eyes. He patiently waited, holding eye contact with her, until she sighed and deflated slightly. “Yeah, all right. You don’t have a liar’s eyes. I’ll trust you - after all, you did keep your promise to bring us good news. Just, please... don’t wimp out on us now, okay? We’re really depending on you here.”

“I won’t let anyone down,” Luka nodded. “But understand this: I cannot play favorites. If this is going to work, I need to keep personal feelings out of this as much as possible. I’ll try and negotiate favorable terms for both sides, but that’s as much as I can promise. Will that be acceptable?”

A murmur swept through the gathered crowd, and several heads nodded. Luka patiently waited as the village women talked about it, with a few short arguments breaking out and finishing in the meanwhile, but in the end, his patience was rewarded when an agreement was reached. He turned to the Elder, who approached him at that point.

“We have talked it over, Hero, and decided we will entrust you with the negotiations as well,” she informed him. “All we ask, for the time being, is that the men be allowed to go back and forth from the villages as needed. As for the rest of the agreement... Would you kindly ask the Harpy Queen if her tribe would be willing to help out with chores and work in the village? Harpies can fly, and are far stronger than we are. Their help in running the village would be invaluable.”

“That seems reasonable,” Luka nodded as he made mental notes. “I will ask Queen Sophie as soon as possible. Is there anything else?”

“Nothing that I can think of, for now,” the Elder said. “We will work things out once we know how much the Harpies are willing to do and just how much they need from us.”

“I understand. Well then...” Luka began, but was interrupted when Alice, who had remained silent until then, spoke up for the first time.

“Wait,” she said. “You should also tell the Queen Harpy that she will have to see about limiting the amount of breeding her people will do.”

“Huh?” Luka blinked, confused. “Why is that? They’re doing this to increase their numbers, after all. Wouldn’t limiting breeding defeat the purpose?”

“Not exactly,” Alice shook her head as she explained. “Harpies are explosive breeders, sometimes laying multiple clutches of two or more eggs in a season, and they grow to maturity sooner than humans do, as well. If they breed without restraint, there will soon be too many of them, and the male population will be stretched too thin to keep up. Also, you’ll want to talk to both sides about allowing men to partner with multiple human women, because if the Harpies’ breeding rate isn’t met by an increased birth rate on the human side, the situation will quickly get out of hand. Even then, this village will have to find a way to get fresh blood in the form of men moving in.”

“Huh... you’re right. Elder...?” Luka asked the old village chief. The woman frowned, thinking.

“Your friend there has a point, young man,” she admitted. “We may have to... revise our own customs. This may take more time and effort than expected. Still... for the sake of peace... we will try.”

“Wait, wait, wait,” a voice suddenly rose from the crowd. "I was with you until this point, but... You're suggesting we start accepting polygamy?! Not just accept, it even - you're suggesting we actively encourage it?! That's unthinkable!”

“Actually, it’s not that uncommon...” the Elder spoke up. “It’s an accepted practice in some places, and... there actually is nothing forbidding it in Ilias’ scriptures, either. So, yes, it could be done.”

“...Really? Ilias doesn’t forbid polygamy?” another woman asked, surprised. “I always thought it was considered a sin. That’s odd...”

"If it was," Alice chimed in, "that would be fairly stupid. Monsters kidnap men all the time, and if group marriages weren't allowed, the human race would have run out of males a long time ago. Really, from what I've read, the whole two-partner marriage trend is mostly something thought up by human women who simply didn't want to have to compete for their man's attention after they'd snagged him. Although, admittedly, some monsters can be just as clingy as them. But in places like Sabasa, where the kidnapping and fatality rate among men is higher than it is down here in the South, polygamous marriages are fairly common and accepted.”

“Does the desert kingdom really allow polygamy?” a third woman asked. “I'd heard they were civilized and culturally advanced... if they really do apply it, then it may be all right, after all...”

“Polygamy and polyandry, depending on the desires of the involved parties,” the Elder confirmed. “I went there once, when I was younger, and remember attending a group wedding. Sabasa has always prospered, so what they are doing is probably not wrong. We may want to consider it, if it helps us return to being a peaceful and prosperous village again.”

The crowd murmured again, but now the cautiously agreeing voices exceeded the ones of opposition. The Elder listened to the villagers’ opinions for a bit, then turned around towards Luka.

“I will handle things here; you should go and take care of your own end of the business,” she said. “Don’t worry, I’ll convince them to give it a spin. I think what you’ve got going here is worth a shot. Good luck to you.”

“I’m relieved to hear you say that,” Luka smiled gratefully. “I will leave it to you to come up with a suitable arrangement for the village’s women, then. I have the feeling it’s a delicate matter I really shouldn’t butt into too much. If anything, you should discuss it with the men.”

“Indeed - plus, you have your hands full already, young man,” the old woman agreed. “In fact, yours is probably the hardest role in this whole situation. Hang in there.”

“Thank you, ma’am,” Luka replied with a nod. He briefly spoke with the Elder a little longer, agreeing to, among other things, bring up the subject of a direct meeting with the Queen Harpy, then excused himself and turned towards Alice. At her questioning look, he raised his hand in invitation.

“Will you come with me this time, Alice?” he asked. “Without you, I’d never have thought about the breeding rate issue, and would probably have caused a small mess. I’d feel safer with you by my side in this whole thing.”

“Why am I not surprised you need me in the end?” the white-haired monster replied with a sigh. “Very well, I’ll come with you. You’d probably screw something else up without me, anyway. Besides, I’m curious to see this Harpy Village myself. Maybe there’s some good food there.”

“...I’m not even surprised anymore,” Luka muttered, then smiled. “But thank you for coming along. I do feel safer, now. Well then... if you’re ready, shall we leave at once?”

“Fine, why not?” Alice nodded. “Lead the way.”

“I’ll be back as soon as possible,” Luka informed the village Elder. “If all goes well, I'll be back with good news soon. Farewell for now.”

As he turned around and walked off towards the village’s exit with Alice in tow, the red-haired girl ran up behind him, shouting.

“Be careful, Hero!” she called out. “Come back safe! And... my name is Silvina!”

Luka’s answer was a wave of his hand as he kept walking past the village’s gates. Soon, he reached the tree line, and he and Alice disappeared from view.

----

Later that day, a slightly tired Luka entered the Queen Harpy’s chamber, ready to report his progress to her with Alice in tow, now back in her monster form. Fatigue was starting to be felt by the young man, as he’d barely had time to catch his breath before leaving Happiness Village again. However, he ignored it, focused on his own duty.

As the pair walked in, the Queen Harpy turned to greet them, and briefly froze upon seeing Alice. For an instant, she appeared as if she wanted to say something, but a sharp glare from the Echidna, unseen by Luka, shut her up. The tired boy didn’t notice anything odd, too preoccupied with gathering his thoughts and preparing his report. Stopping before the Queen, he bowed to her, then looked up and began to talk.

“I have returned,” he started. “And I have good news. The humans appear to be willing to negotiate. There’s some unrest among them due to the specifics of the situation on their side, but the Elder of Happiness Village seems to be handling that quite well.”

“They agreed? Amazing,” the Queen breathed, impressed. “You did well. I was right in trusting you. So then, what are their demands?”

“Well, the specifics still have to be defined,” Luka replied, thinking. “But overall, their requests so far are that the men be allowed to move between the two villages at their leisure, and that the Harpy tribe be willing to lend a hand with their flight capabilities and superior strength in handling village work that is difficult or impossible for humans to perform.”

“I see,” Queen Sophie nodded. “And what are they willing to concede in return?”

“Shared use of the men for mating purposes, within certain limits,” Luka replied. At the Queen’s questioning glance, he clarified. “My companion Alice, here, has brought up a very good point: Harpies breed faster than humans, and mature faster as well. If your breeding isn’t somewhat limited, the population explosion would quickly exceed the ability of the male population to keep up. I think it's a sensible request, on that point. Overpopulation can be just as hazardous as near-extinction.”

“That is indeed a fair point,” Queen Sophie nodded. “I will have to discuss it with the tribe. Many of us dearly love children, and want to have as many of them as possible, so they may not be too happy with such a limitation, but I think I can make them understand.”

“If you would, it’d help things out immensely,” Luka said, grateful. “A sudden population explosion would severely stress out relationships between the two races.”

“Indeed, it would,” Sophie murmured thoughtfully. Appearing to be thinking about something, she seemed to reach a decision, and suddenly looked up. “I do have a condition to agree to this limitation on breeding, though.”

“You do? Please do tell. If it’s something workable, I’m sure there will be no issue implementing it,” Luka replied. The Queen nodded to him.

“The condition is simple: that I, as the tribe’s Queen, be allowed to pick any one male of my choice to mate with, for at least one clutch of young,” she said. “The Queen is the center of the tribe, and as such, it is my duty to regularly provide fresh blood of the highest quality possible. Therefore, I must insist on this concession.”

“I don’t see any issue with this request,” Luka agreed. “It seems fairly reasonable. Would that be all?”

“For the time being, yes,” the Queen nodded. “I will need to know exactly what the humans will need our assistance with in their village. If the situation calls for it, we might have to partially fuse the villages. It is an option, at any rate.”

“Understood. Also, the humans’ Elder requested your availability for a personal meeting with you, so that the details can be ironed out,” the boy Hero informed her. “What should I tell her?”

“Let her know that as long as my presence will not unnerve her fellow humans, I will gladly meet her and speak with her in person,” the Queen Harpy replied. “It is a necessary step towards reaching an understanding, after all.” She then smiled warmly. “This is all going better than I expected. I am truly thankful to you, Hero Luka. You have been a blessing to us.”

“It’s not over yet, Your Highness,” Luka replied, smiling back. “I appreciate your gratitude, but you should wait until the deal is sealed. Only then will I have earned your thanks.”

“As you wish, then,” the Harpy graciously nodded. “Nonetheless, regardless of the outcome of all this, my gratitude remains. You have gone above and beyond your duty. Well done, indeed.”

“Your words flatter me, Your Highness,” Luka replied with a bow. “Then, I will leave at once...”

“No. You are clearly tired,” the Queen shook her head. “You should rest. A tired body can impair judgment as much as too much haste. Take it easy and regain your strength. I will have a room prepared for you. You still are under my protection, so do not worry about my subjects assaulting you.”

“Now that you mention it, I do feel sore and worn out from all the day’s events,” Luka admitted. “It’s still early, but... I think I will accept your offer. After all, you are right - haste and fatigue never help in such delicate matters.”

“Good,” she nodded as she produced a sharp crack with her wing. As before, a guard appeared immediately. Luka bowed to the queen, awaiting her dismissal. “You may go. But before you do, I have a favor to ask. May I speak with your companion?”

“Eh? If she wants to, I have no objection, Your Highness,” Luka replied, confused. “But she’s not under my command or anything. I can't make her do something she doesn’t want to.”

“I don’t mind,” Alice replied. “You should go rest, Luka. You do look very tired. I’ll join you later.”

“Very well then. Your Highness,” he bowed again, then turned around and left the room. Alice and the Queen Harpy remained, looking at each other. After a brief silence, Sophie spoke up.

“Excuse me, but you wouldn’t happen to be...?” she asked, leaving the question hanging in the air. Alice regarded her with an unreadable expression for a few seconds, then cocked her head.

“I am merely a gourmet traveling the lands. That is all,” she stated with a tone of finality. The Queen nodded, understanding. Alice’s eyes then narrowed. “I do have to ask, though. That was a peculiar condition you made to agree to the limitation on breeding. What do you have in mind?”

“I... am not entirely sure myself,” the Queen replied after a brief silence. “Would there be any problem with that?”

“...no. Do what you will, so long as it’s nothing that would cause open hostility between monsters and humans,” Alice replied curtly. “Beyond that, what you do - or who you seek out - is none of my business.”

“Understood. Well then, it was a pleasure to speak with you,” the Queen concluded with a bow of her head. Alice merely nodded once, then left without a word. Left behind, the Queen Harpy looked out of the window, thoughtful.

Was it alright for her to be selfish?

----

Over the next few days, Luka tirelessly traveled back and forth between Happiness Village and Harpy Village, delivering messages, helping straighten details out and escorting the two village leaders to their meetings. The negotiations gradually went smoother, in good part thanks to the young Hero’s contribution. Unbeknowst to him, he gained quite a following among the young women of both sides thanks to his efforts to help the two villages, with only the Queen Harpy’s protection stopping the more eager Harpies from making a move towards him. The human women, however, were not so restrained, and Luka did notice some of their more blatant passes. He found it to be cause of anxiety; somehow, the humans seemed more threatening to him than the monsters.

Finally, the day came when the agreement between the two villages was to be signed. For the important occasion, a large amount of both villages’ inhabitants gathered in a clearing, including many of the kidnapped men, who had resumed moving freely between the two villages. The men’s return had caused a fairly huge commotion in the human village, as some had brought along their Harpy wives and children for their human families to meet, and some arguments had broken out over it. While there were still tensions, the two sides appeared to be trying to work things out, and Luka was hopeful that things would settle down in the end.

As the gathered crowd of humans and Harpies buzzed with chatter, there was a sudden commotion when the Queen Harpy swept in from the sky and landed in the center of the clearing, where a table had been set up. The crowd quieted down at the Queen’s appearance, which was shortly followed by Happiness Village’s Elder walking in, escorted by Luka. The young Hero and the Elder walked through the crowd, which parted to let them pass, and reached the clearing the Queen was standing in as well.

At this point, Luka broke off and stood aside, his part done. From that point on, it was the two village leaders’ show, and he was only another spectator. Joining the mixed crowd, he watched the events unfold. Alice soon joined him, having elected to keep her human form so as to not unnerve the human crowd with the appearance of an unfamiliar monster.

Following that, the Queen and the Elder offered a joint speech, explaining the agreement the two sides had come to: the humans would agree to lend their men when needed to the Harpies, and those men would be free to move however they liked between the two villages. In return, the Harpies would help the humans with general village management, air deliveries, and work that would be impossible or too taxing for mere humans. Additionally, the Harpies would be relied upon in cases where a human mother was incapable of caring for a child, something which the Harpies, loving children as they did, had eagerly agreed upon.

The speech ended with the two leaders wishing each other’s people peace and prosperity, and hoping their collaboration would be fruitful. Following that, the formal agreement was signed by both, and at that point, cheering and applause saluted the successful negotiation.

After the agreement was signed, the crowd scattered across the clearing, and small groups formed - largely mixed, to Luka’s surprise and pleasure. Humans and Harpies mingled with each other, and a party started. At that point, Alice promptly made herself scarce, looking for food. Left alone, Luka wandered around for a bit, until the Elder and the Queen Harpy approached him, bringing a glass of fruit punch with them for him. Luka accepted the beverage gratefully, and for the next few minutes, the group of three watched the festivities, satisfied with the result of their hard work.

“This is working out well,” Luka spoke up after a while. “Everything went better than I honestly expected.”

“There is still a lot of work to be done,” the Elder chimed in. “But that’s for us to worry about. You have done everything you could to help us, Hero. The rest is up to us.”

“I hope everything will go well for you,” Luka replied. “I’m sure if you keep at it, you’ll succeed in making this work out.”

“Indeed,” Sophie nodded. “I’m glad I trusted you when you came before me, Hero Luka. This all was made possible thanks to you. I am truly grateful.” Smiling warmly at him, she added, “If it is not too much trouble, would you visit me in the village later? There is one thing I would like to discuss with you.”

“Of course, Your Highness,” Luka replied with a small nod of his head. “I always have time for you. I’ll pay you a visit as soon as the festivities are over, if it’s not too much of a hassle.”

“That would be fine, yes,” she replied. “Well then, you should enjoy the celebration. After all, it is partly in your honor, too. Walk around, talk, enjoy yourself. Just one thing, though,” she added, almost as an afterthought. “I have officially modified my edict concerning you. My subjects still aren’t allowed to assault you... but they are allowed to attempt to seduce you if so they wish. Since human women have been observed making passes at you, there’s been some discontent among the Harpies, many of whom are interested in you, and I had to make this concession. It may cause you problems, but... I hope you will understand.”

“Er, I suppose so,” he nodded uncertainly. “I guess I’ll have to just be careful about what I say. Thank you for the warning. By your leave?”

“Of course,” the Queen nodded. “You need no longer ask me for permission to leave. You have proved yourself more than enough to earn the right to come and go as you please. Enjoy yourself, Hero.”

“Thank you. I will meet you later, Your Highness,” Luka nodded. With one last bow, he turned around and left, mixing with the crowd. The Elder gave the Queen Harpy a shrewd look.

“I see how it is... well, it’s your prerogative,” she commented with a wry smile. “I will excuse myself, then. I’m sure you have your own thoughts to mull over.” With that, the Elder also left. Alone, Queen Sophie lost herself in quiet contemplation. She had to think about the future.

She had to think about her future.

----

Later that evening, a tired but happy Luka walked into the Harpies’ village, whistling a tune. The celebrations had gone without incident, as well, and even helped solve some of the currently existing tensions between human and Harpy families. Luka had noted with surprise that quite a few of the Ilias believers had also interacted with the Harpies, and in a few cases, he heard some humans express doubt over whether Ilias’ prohibition was truly the best thing in the long run, since without it, the Harpies presumably wouldn’t have gotten so desperate in the first place.

Luka himself did have a few problems, though. As the Queen Harpy had anticipated, more than a few Harpies of various ages had approached him, testing the waters for his willingness to consider mating. Luka managed to rebuff their advances, although on more than one occasion he found himself nearly faltering. Privately, he had to admit that being the object of so much interest was flattering.

As he walked towards Queen Sophie’s house, he noticed a few Harpies cast him curious glances on their way home, some of them giggling. He blinked, unsure of what was going on, then shrugged as he realized it was likely the tail end of all the offers he’d received during the celebrations. Relaxing, he proceeded up the rope ladder leading to the ruler’s home, and entered the house. He immediately noticed the Queen Harpy standing at the window, looking over the village. As he approached her, she turned towards him and gave him a welcoming smile, motioning for the nearby couch.

“Ah, welcome, Hero Luka. Please, make yourself comfortable,” she invited him. “Is there anything you’d like? Food, beverages?”

“After all that food at the festivities? Surely you jest, Your Highness,” he replied, smiling back as he took a seat on the couch. “And please, just Luka will do. If I keep hearing people call me Hero, I might start getting a big head.”

At that, the Queen laughed, a peculiar trilling sound which Luka found rather appealing. He smiled again. The Queen apparently appreciated his attempt at humor.

“Well then, Luka,” she began as she took a seat next to him herself. “I trust my subjects did not cause you too much grief? I hear you were rather... popular at the celebration.”

“Uh, yeah,” Luka admitted, scratching his cheek in slight embarrassment. “To be honest, all that attention was flattering, but I didn’t expect so many women to approach me. Did you know there would be so many of them participating?”

“I imagined that would be the case,” she replied. “You’re seen as a very desirable mate at the moment. After all, even the human women approached you, did they not?”

“Yeah, they did,” he replied. “It was unexpected. I honestly can’t see the reason for so much interest. I only helped things along. You and the Elder did the majority of the work.”

“You aren’t giving your role the importance it is due,” Queen Sophie gently chided him. “I assure you, your contribution was just as vital as ours. But enough about that. I wished to talk to you about an important matter.”

“So I remember,” Luka nodded, becoming serious. “I hope no problems have popped up. I’ll try to assist to the best of my abilities, regardless.”

“It is nothing critical or problematic, but it does concern the deal that was signed today,” the Queen replied slowly. “Specifically, it concerns the condition that was put forth to agree to the limitation on breeding.”

“You mean the choice of mate for yourself?” Luka frowned. “I thought that went through without incident. Did something change?”

“No, nothing of the sort,” the Queen shook her head. “I merely wished to inform you that I have reached a decision on who my pick will be. I have decided I’d like to have you as my mate.”

Silence suddenly filled the room as Luka stared at her, his brain suddenly grinding to a halt as he processed the Queen Harpy’s words. Then, as their meaning sank in, he began to stammer, panicking.

“W-Wait a minute, Your Highness!” he replied, shocked. “Surely I misheard you just now? There’s a whole village of more mature and experienced men than me available to you. Why would you request for me specifically?”

“...As I said, you do not give yourself enough credit, Luka,” Sophie replied gently. “You put a great deal of effort in helping us reach a peaceful coexistence with humans, and thanks to you, our future is no longer uncertain. Day after day, you tirelessly went back and forth between the two villages, spending time and effort for the sake of others. Not once did you complain, nor did you ever ask for a reward. Is it really so strange that so many of us - myself included - find you a desirable man and wish to have your children? There aren’t many men like you, of any age.”

“Ah... I see your point, but still...” Luka replied, trying to think of a counterpoint. As he fished for a way out, the Queen frowned.

“Am I undesirable in your eyes?” she asked plainly. “You seem to be very reluctant to consider my request. Is there something that displeases you about me? If so, perhaps I can do something about it...”

“What...? No, no! That’s not it at all!” Luka replied hastily, realizing the Queen had gotten the wrong impression. “It’s just... this is very sudden. I’m not sure...”

“If you would share your misgivings with me, then perhaps we could reach an understanding,” she offered. “Will you confide in me? I would like to understand the source of your reluctance, at least.”

“I owe you that much, don’t I?” Luka admitted, nodding. Sighing, he leaned back on the couch and relaxed, choosing his next words carefully. “It’s not that I don’t find you desirable - on the contrary, I found you to be a rare beauty from the first minute I saw you. And I am admittedly flattered that you’d want me as your mate of choice. It’s just... I’m also on a journey, you see. And it’s an important one, which I would rather not have to abandon.”

“Of course,” the Queen nodded. “I have no intention of forcing you to settle down or anything. You are free to go afterwards, and--”

“No!” Luka snapped, then caught himself as he saw the startled expression on Queen Sophie’s face. “My apologies, I didn’t mean to shout at you. But... that’s not it.” Sighing, he began to explain in a low voice. “I grew up essentially without a father. He... chose a road that brought him away from his family. In the end, that road got him killed. My mother raised me herself, alone. She never complained, and always looked very happy to have me. I have no doubt she loved me more than anything else in the world... but I could also see that being alone in raising me was hard on her.” Looking up, he met Sophie’s eyes. “That’s why I promised myself that I’d never do what my father did. I do want to have children - in fact, I’d love to have a large family. Mother always seemed so happy caring for me, and I’d like to experience what it feels like to be a parent, as well. But... I don’t feel right leaving any children of mine behind. It makes me feel as if I’m being the same as my father. I don’t like that.”

“I see...” the Queen nodded as Luka finished speaking. For a brief time, neither Luka nor the Harpy talked, lost in thought. Then, Sophie looked up and smiled faintly. “Once again, I think you aren’t giving yourself enough credit,” she said. At Luka’s questioning glance, she continued. “You have misgivings about leaving your children. That by itself shows you care, and your caring makes you a good man. You attract us for a reason, Luka. We can see you as the good man you are. Try having more faith in yourself.”

“That’s easy for you to say, but...” Luka shook his head. “I just want to avoid making the same mistakes my father did, you know?”

“I understand your hesitation,” Sophie nodded. “Nonetheless, I ask you to please take some time and carefully consider my request. I am willing to do whatever you ask of me if you will just agree to this. I will not try to force you, either, but I want you to understand something: I am not choosing you out of instinct or duty.”

“Huh...?” Luka asked, puzzled. Sophie nodded.

"As I said once before, the Queen is the center of the tribe. We have to provide fresh blood to the tribe, and personal feelings almost never matter. Whichever man is available and has the best genes is usually the one we mate with. But I’m choosing you because I like you. There may be better men than you, from a physical point of view... but you are the one I am attracted to. Just this once, I want to be selfish and follow my own feelings, rather than be dutiful. Perhaps that makes me a terrible person, but... this one time, I will indulge myself. Please keep this in mind when making your decision. It is you I am interested in, not your genes.”

“I see... I will think about it,” Luka replied slowly. “If you don’t mind, I’ll retire for the night. I don’t expect I’ll get much sleep, but... perhaps resting will bring me advice.”

“Take however long you need to reach a decision,” the Queen reassured him. “I will not urge you to make haste. If necessary, seek others for advice. Perhaps, take a stroll through our village, see how we care for our children. Raising newborns is a community effort; any offspring of yours would be in good hands here, but it would be best if you saw that yourself. I will patiently wait for your answer, whichever it may be.”

“Yes. Thank you for your patience, Your Highness,” Luka said, bowing deeply. “I promise I will consider your request with all the attention it deserves. Forgive me for my hesitation.”

“You have nothing to be forgiven for,” Sophie waved his concerns away. “After all, what I am asking you is no small matter. It deserves your full attention. Have a good night, Luka.”

Luka nodded and bowed again, then left the Queen’s rooms, his head spinning. The Queen of all Harpies wants to bear my children? he thought, still having trouble wrapping his head around the concept. And it’s not just out of duty, but because she’s attracted to me? I do want children, and she’s beautiful, but... what about my journey?

As Luka wobbled out of the house, confused, a serpentine figure waiting near the door looked up, approached him, unnoticed by him in his dazed state, and grabbed him by his arm just as he, lost in thought, nearly stepped off the platform and into empty air. Startled, he blinked, realized his situation and jumped back from the edge. Looking back to his saviour, he met Alice’s gaze, somewhere between amused and annoyed.

“What are you doing, you idiot?” she scolded him. “If I hadn’t grabbed you, you’d be a human pancake by now. Pay attention to where you walk.”

“Y-Yeah,” he nodded, embarrassed. “Sorry about that. Thank you for saving me. It’s just... I’m a little out of it.”

“I assume the Queen told you she wants you as her mate?” she asked him. At his puzzled expression, she scoffed. “Anyone with working eyes and half a brain could see that she was considering you the whole time. The way she worded that agreement in particular was telltale... she specified ‘any man of her choosing’, but never said anything about that man being ‘from the village’. It was you she had in mind from the start. Everyone knew it. You were the only one who failed to realize her interest.”

“If you knew, why didn’t you warn me, or talk her out of it?” Luka protested, irritated. Alice gave him a flat stare.

“First off, because you should’ve realized it. It’s not my fault you’re so oblivious to these things,” she replied curtly. “And secondly, it’s not my place to tell the Queen who to choose as her mate. It’s something that concerns only you and her.” Then her expression softened. “But I must admit, I was impressed that you’d be so concerned about any possible children you may have with her. Most men would just see the opportunity to have sex with a beautiful, desirable woman like her and not care about anything else. You, however, thought of the children first. I must agree with Queen Sophie; you’d be a wonderful father.”

“...so what should I do? You were obviously listening in, so I’d like your opinion,” Luka asked her after a pause. “I’ll be honest: I find the fact she chose me extremely flattering. She’s certainly very desirable, as you said, and I wouldn’t mind having children, even if maybe it’s a little too early for me. But, I also can’t give up my journey, especially if I did have children. This isn’t a world I’d want them to grow up in; I’d owe it to them to make it better. And if I continue my journey, I’d have to abandon them. Even if it’s for the sake of making a better world for them to live in, I don’t want to be an absentee father to my children - but at the same time, I do want to take the Queen up on her offer. I don’t know what to do...”

“You aren’t disturbed by the fact that your first-born will be monsters, and there’ll likely be more than just one?” Alice asked him, curious. Luka shook his head.

“No. Human or monster, I’d love them all the same,” he replied. “They’d be my flesh and blood. What else matters?”

“Heh... You’re fascinating,” Alice said with a small smile as she observed him, thinking. After a brief time, she appeared to reach a decision. “Very well, then. I’ll help you. Should you accept the Queen’s offer, I promise that I’ll use my magic to bring you back here at the time of her eggs’ hatching, and afterwards whenever you feel the urge to see your newborns. How does that sound?”

“Eh? You’d do that for me? Really?” Luka looked up at her, surprised. The Echidna nodded.

“I would,” she confirmed. “I like how thoughtful you’re being. It makes me want to help you rest more easily. Even so, you should still think carefully about this decision. It’s a big commitment, and shouldn’t be taken lightly. Take the night and all of tomorrow to think things through.”

“Yeah... the Queen said the same thing,” the boy Hero nodded. He then looked at her. “Say, Alice. What kind of person was your father?”

“Hm? I don’t remember him, actually,” she replied nonchalantly. “He was probably some man my mother met on the road. I don’t even know if she ate him or not. Although, knowing what kind of person she was, she probably didn’t kill him. But among many monsters, including snake-types, males don’t have much importance.”

“I see... what about your mother, then?” Luka asked. At that, Alice’s face clouded over, and the boy got the impression that he’d hit a sore spot. Before he could tell her to forget it, however, she spoke up quietly.

“She... was a lot like you, actually,” she murmured, and Luka frowned, noticing Alice was speaking of her mother in the past tense. “You’d have liked her.” Sighing, she turned away. “I don’t want to talk about this anymore. Let’s go to sleep. You have other things to think about, anyway. Focus on your own future, rather than my past.”

As Alice wandered off, Luka watched her retreating form, thoughtful. It seemed she herself had a painful past behind her. He suddenly felt a little closer to the haughty Echidna. If he could understand one thing, it was reluctance to revisit bad memories.

Sliding down the rope ladder to the ground below, he walked off towards his own treetop cabin, mulling over the day’s unexpected end. Hopefully, the night would bring him advice.

----

Luka woke up uncharacteristically late the next morning, having spent most of the night tossing and turning around in an attempt to decide what to do. Eventually he’d fallen into a fitful sleep, populated by confused images he could not remember.

As he got up and shuffled around for his clothes, he heard noises from outside. Curious, he peeked out of a window, and saw a few adult Harpies fluttering about in the village’s center, playing with a group of Harpy chicks. Curious, he stopped at the window, observing the group’s activities for a while.

The adult Harpies tending to the chicks did not all appear to be their mothers; while some did look a little like the young ones, most of them sported quite different colors to their feathers and hair. They also seemed to be older than most Harpies he’d seen around the village. Remembering what Queen Sophie said before, he guessed this had to be the community effort she had mentioned. All Harpies, not just the mothers, participated in raising the young.

Deciding he wanted to see the activities more closely, he quickly refreshed himself with a basin of cold water brought earlier by someone, got dressed and hastily left the house. Quickly sliding down the ladder leading to his cabin, he saw the group was still playing and nodded in satisfaction. It’d have been a shame if they had finished and left before he could take a closer look.

As he approached the group of adults and chicks, the older Harpies spotted him and eyed him with curiosity, but made no attempt to stop him. Apparently, his actions had earned him enough trust that the Harpies would allow him near their young, but from the adult Harpies’ posture, he got the distinct impression that any other intruder would have been a lot less fortunate in such an attempt. Leaning against a tree trunk, he settled down and resumed watching the Harpy group’s activities.

Observing the group, it became clear to him that the chicks being cared for couldn’t fly just yet and were probably mere weeks old. Occasionally, they would call out to each other with cute ‘kyuu’ sounds. He had no idea what those sounds meant, but the adult Harpies seemed unconcerned, so it likely was not something bad.

While observing, he heard a flapping sound to his side, and looked up to his left, seeing a familiar-looking brown-haired Harpy glide down towards him. Blinking, he suddenly recognized her as the same Harpy he’d first met when he came to the village - the one accompanied by a younger, pink-haired one. Smiling, he waved at her.

“Ah, hello,” he greeted her as she landed near him. “We haven’t met since I first came here, did we? I never did thank you for helping me back then. Without your help I’d likely have gotten in trouble. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome, Hero,” she replied, smiling back. “But I’ll admit I’m disappointed to hear that our Queen has chosen you as her mate. My younger sister thinks you're cute, and I was hoping to make you her first partner.”

“Ahahahaha... sorry about that,” Luka replied, scratching his head. “I’m honestly having my hands full deciding what to do about the Queen’s request. I’m afraid I can’t commit myself to anything else.”

“Decide...? What’s there to decide?” the Harpy asked him, curious. “The Queen wants to have your children specifically. Don’t you find that a great honor?”

“Oh, I do... it’s something else that worries me,” he murmured, shaking his head. The Harpy looked at him, then at the group he’d been observing, and back to him, sudden understanding dawning in her eyes.

“Aaahhh, I see,” she said. “You’re worried about whether your young will be taken care of, aren’t you? That’s why you’ve been looking at this group so much.” She nodded, pleased with herself at having figured it out. “Well, there’s nothing to worry about. See? We all adore children, and we'd rather die than let anything happen to them.”

“I can see you care a great deal for them,” Luka nodded as he watched the Harpies herd the chicks and play tag with them. “That’s certainly one worry off my back. I still have something to figure out, though...”

“Well, once you make your decision, could I perhaps interest you in being my sister’s mate?” she asked suddenly. “I know you said you can’t commit yourself any further, but it’s not like you’d have babies with her. She’s not in her fertile phase yet, she just reached the phase where she’s interested in boys. And I think you’d be the right choice for her first partner.”

“Uh. I’m flattered by your proposal, but I really must decline,” Luka apologized. “I can’t even decide whether to accept the Queen’s offer after thinking on it all night, you can’t honestly expect me to agree to even more mating on the side. And your sister deserves a man all to herself for her first time. But do tell her I appreciate the fact she’d want me as her first. I hope things work out for her. With this new agreement in place, she should be fine.”

“Mmmm. She’ll be disappointed, but I think I can make her understand,” the Harpy nodded. She then looked at him intently. “We all know the Queen is following her wishes with her choice being you, instead of acting out of duty, but she’s cared for us so long and so much that we all think she deserves her own little bit of happiness. We all hope you’ll agree to her request. Good day, Hero.”

With that, the Harpy took off and flew away. Luka followed her flight until she disappeared behind some trees, then resumed watching the Harpy chicks playing. As he did, one of the younger chicks became curious and trotted towards him, eyeing him with wonder. Focused on him, she didn’t notice a small root in her way and tripped over it, falling down face-first on the ground. A pitiful ‘kyuu’ came from the unfortunate chick as she began to cry, and before fully realizing it, Luka found himself checking over the fallen child, comforting her with light pats on her head.

The chick stopped crying, looking up at him with big round eyes, and then smiled happily, raising her tiny wings towards him. Smiling back, Luka ruffled her hair, then picked her up carefully and handed her to an older Harpy who’d flitted over to check the situation with some apprehension in her eyes. The Harpy nodded at him with a grateful look as she took the chick from him, then returned the young one to the group, which resumed playing after the brief interruption.

Returning to the tree he’d been leaning on, Luka watched the group some more. As he did, a familiar voice came from behind him.

“You really like children, don’t you?” Alice said in a conversational tone, having stood behind that same tree for a while now. “Even with those monster bandits, you went out of your way to help them, and you were willing to start a fight with humans if they threatened them.” Luka sighed and looked to his side.

“I know you have something to say, Alice,” he replied to the Echidna. “Come out with it and get it over with.”

“You’re going to do it, aren’t you?” the white-haired monster asked simply, looking at the sky. Luka sighed again, then nodded.

“...yeah. I am,” he confirmed. “I still have some misgivings... but I think it’ll all be worth it in the end. So, yes... I’m going to accept Queen Sophie’s request.”

“...heh. Would you have imagined yourself as a monster queen’s willing mate when you first set out on this journey, not too long ago?” she asked, somewhat amused. Luka snorted.

“I’d find it easier to imagine myself as the Monster Lord’s personal toy, honestly,” he replied, causing Alice to blink in surprise for a second and then suppress a laugh at the involuntary irony of the comment. “Life’s full of surprises like this, I guess.”

“Hahaha! You don’t know the half of it,” the Echidna replied, covering her mouth with a hand. She then moved away from the tree and glanced at him over her shoulder. “Well then, I imagine you will be busy until tomorrow. You should probably inform the Queen of your decision now. After all, she’ll likely have to make arrangements.”

With that, she slithered away, leaving a thoughtful Luka behind. The boy Hero watched the Harpy group for a few moments longer, then pushed himself off the tree, straightened up, and began walking towards Queen Sophie’s house.

----

As Luka walked into the Queen’s house, he spotted her looking out of the window again. Hearing him come in, she turned around and greeted him with a nod, then cocked her head, looking at him.

“Good day, Luka,” she said. “I didn’t expect a visit from you this early. Do you perhaps have any further questions for me? I will be more than happy to put any doubts you may have to rest.”

“That won’t be necessary, Your Highness,” Luka shook his head. “I have made up my mind. I’ll accept your offer, and be your mate.”

“You... will?” the Queen murmured, taken aback by the sudden declaration. She gave him a worried look. “Are you absolutely, positively certain about it? No one coerced you into it?”

“Nothing of the sort,” Luka shook his head reassuringly. “I know you probably didn’t expect me to reach a decision so quickly, but... I guess I did. To be honest, I’m still worried about some things, but I’ve decided that in the end, I won’t regret it.”

At that, the Queen broke out in an absolutely solar smile. “I’m truly happy you decided to accept,” she told him as she stepped closer. “I promise you shan’t regret it. Thank you, Luka.”

“Yes, well,” the young Hero scratched his cheek, slightly embarrassed by her sudden proximity. “I will leave you alone for now. I, uh, assume you will need some private time to yourself beforehand?”

“Mmm... that would be best, yes,” Sophie nodded, covering her mouth with a wing to conceal a smile at his fidgeting. “Then, may I invite you to my chambers after sundown?”

“I would be honored to join you then,” he nodded, bowing to her. “Then, please excuse me while I go get ready myself. I doubt it’d be appropriate for an unwashed savage to keep you company, after all.”

“Haha, I suppose so,” she laughed. She then looked at him, smiling warmly. “I will eagerly await you, Luka. I look forward to our time together.”

“As do I, Your Highness,” he replied, smiling back. The Queen again hid her mouth behind her wing.

“Now, now, should you not be less formal towards me? You are, after all, going to be my mate,” she chided him gently. “You may call me Sophie. It would be awkward if you called me ‘Your Highness’ all the time from this moment onward, after all.”

“Very well... Sophie,” Luka said, calling out her name with a tinge of hesitation. At her smiling nod, he relaxed. “Then, I'll be going now. I’ll return this evening.”

“Of course. Have a good day,” Queen Sophie nodded as she watched him walk out. Turning around, she let out an uncharacteristically undignified giggle. Suddenly, she felt very, very happy.

----

That evening, Luka left his cabin, feeling a slight sense of trepidation. Looking around at the Harpy village from the height of the house, he took its sights in, trying to relax. No point in acting like a blushing virgin, he thought. I should focus more on not disappointing Queen Sophie.

Sliding down the ladder leading to the cabin, he reached the ground and began to walk towards the Queen’s house. As he did, a few Harpies who were hurrying home spotted him and waved at him mid-flight. He waved back, suppressing a grimace. He suspected the entire village knew by now that he’d accepted Sophie’s offer, and while he doubted the Harpies would make fun of him for it, the awareness that the details of his personal life were so widespread was still rather embarrassing.

As he made his way to Sophie’s house, he spotted Alice slithering towards him and stopped, curious about what she wanted. Coming up to him, she paused, observing him thoughtfully with crossed arms, then spoke up.

“This is your last chance to back off, you know,” she informed him. “Although, if you did it now, Queen Sophie would likely never forgive you for the humiliation. Well?”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Luka glared at her. “I’m not such a coward that I’d flee at the last minute. I’m committed. I made my decision, and I’ll stick with it.”

“Good,” Alice nodded. “I simply wanted to make sure you weren’t getting cold feet. If you did, it could be disastrous to relationships between humans and monsters.”

“Even if that wasn’t an issue, it’d be completely unmanly of me to do such a thing,” he pointed out. “How could I even call myself a man if I ran off like that, let alone a Hero?”

“Heh. Well then, run along,” she shooed him away. “Making a Queen wait isn’t good.” As she slithered off, she seemed to have an afterthought, and turned around briefly. “Say, is this how you plan to persuade the Monster Lord to agree to peace with humans?” she asked him cheekily. “By seducing her with your manly charm?”

“Get lost, you mischievous fiend!” he shot back, half-jokingly. “I’m trying to focus here, can’t you see that?”

Alice’s answer was an amused laugh as she turned away and wandered off, leaving him alone. Luka shook his head, then smiled. The encounter with the Echidna had left him more relaxed, and his apprehension was now mostly gone. She had to have done that on purpose. He made a note to thank her later for her assistance, then took a deep breath and resumed walking towards the Queen Harpy’s house.

Climbing up, he reached the platform the house stood on. At his appearance, the guards standing at the door to the Queen’s house nodded at him and stepped aside with a smile.

“The Queen awaits you, Hero,” one addressed him. “Please proceed inside.”

“Uh...” Luka nodded at the guard, uncertain. The other Harpy appeared to pick up on his reluctance, and spoke up as well.

“You need not worry about our presence,” she informed him. “The Queen ordered us to stand guard from a more... discreet position, so as not to make you uncomfortable. We understand you’re not used to how we do things just yet.”

“I... see. That’s very thoughtful,” Luka replied, relieved. He had admittedly been worried about being peeped on, and the news made him more relaxed. As he made to move inside, the first guard spoke up again.

“With that said, this house isn’t soundproofed,” she said, the hint of a cheeky smile on her lips. “You may want to be quiet if you do not wish for an audience... although, that might not be an option.”

“Uhh,” Luka replied, suddenly a lot less sure. “I’ll, ah, keep that in mind.” With that, he quickly moved inside before he lost his nerve. A stifled giggle followed him, causing him to blush slightly.

Walking in, he spotted Queen Sophie standing near the window as always. This time, however, she had removed all the jewelry and regalia she normally wore, and in place of her silk shirt, she wore a translucent robe that did absolutely nothing to cover her form and revealed a generous bosom underneath. Luka froze, mesmerized by the sight. He’d never really stopped to take a good look at the Queen’s body, though he’d certainly noticed her beauty, and seeing her like this caught him off guard.

Noticing his reaction, Queen Sophie flashed him a seductive smile, appearing pleased with the effect she was having on him, and approached him slowly. Watching her come closer, Luka couldn’t help but get aroused, and felt his dick stir.

“Welcome, Luka,” she breathed as she stopped before him, close enough he could inhale her scent. She was slightly taller than him, but he didn’t mind - if anything, it increased her attractiveness. “I take it you like what you see?”

“Do you really expect me to say anything other than ‘yes’, Sophie?” he replied to her with a smile. “I may not be the smartest person in the world, but even I know better than to say something stupid in this occasion.”

“Hahaha, I like your honesty,” the Queen replied. She then gave him a meaningful look. “I do think you are a bit... overdressed for the occasion, though. Am I not allowed to also enjoy the view?”

“If that is what my Lady wishes, who am I to say no?” Luka said with a small grin as he started to unbutton his Enrikan shirt. Blushing slightly due to the Queen’s intense gaze on him, he got undressed and set his clothes aside, neatly folded. He then turned around, and found to his surprise that Sophie had disrobed herself and approached him quietly while he was distracted.

Reaching forward, the Harpy wrapped her wings around his shoulders as she leaned into him, and he murmured something unintelligible as he felt a soft warmth engulf his body. The combination of the warm tickling of the Harpy’s feathers and her soft, shapely body gently pushing against his chest was enough to cause Luka’s penis to harden completely. Seeing that, the Queen giggled slightly.

“My, what a nice reaction,” she said, sounding very pleased. “I see you were being honest, after all, when you said you found me desirable. Then, shall I play with you a little?”

Before Luka could answer, the Queen Harpy pushed him, causing him to stumble and fall backwards on the couch behind him. As he blinked in surprise at the unexpected action, the Queen leaned in and knelt before him, placing her wings on his knees to keep his legs separated and expose his throbbing dick. Luka shifted, a little uneasy.

“Um... you don’t have to put yourself in such an undignified position,” he protested weakly. “You’re a Queen, after all...”

“Right now, we are mates,” she told him as she licked her lips. “Forget about being Queen and Hero and just enjoy yourself. I know I will.”

With that, she closed in and began to slowly lick Luka’s hard dick, poking and lapping at it with her soft, pointed tongue. Closing his eyes, Luka decided to let Sophie do as she would, and simply relaxed, enjoying the pleasure of her ministrations.

For the next few minutes, Sophie slowly and methodically licked and sucked Luka’s shaft, exploring every inch of its surface with her mouth. Her tongue had a smooth texture to it, and Luka was somewhat relieved to discover that it wasn’t dry like that of regular birds, instead being wet and moist like that of any human. The smooth feel of her tongue felt very pleasurable on his penis, and the Queen’s slow stimulation ensured he wouldn’t reach his peak quickly. She apparently wished to take her time and savor her catch.

Eventually, Luka felt himself build up to a climax and looked down at Sophie, who was still busy licking and nibbling at his dick. “I’m getting close...” he warned her. At that, she looked up and ceased her ministrations, smiling slightly.

“Now, hold on a little longer,” she breathed out sensually as she got up and began to straddle him. “It would be a shame if you came before enjoying my pussy, wouldn’t it? Besides, there is no point in mating if you don’t impregnate me. You have to do this properly.”

As she lowered herself on him and her outer folds touched his tip, she looked down and smiled at him. “A Queen’s genitals are of the highest quality,” she informed him. “A normal man would barely last ten seconds inside me. But with you, I want to take my time, and let you savor it all. Shall I give you a taste?”

With that, she pushed down, forcing Luka’s waiting dick inside her in one thrust. The boy sharply inhaled at the action, stifling a cry of pleasure as new sensations assaulted him. The Queen Harpy’s insides were slimy and warm, and none-too-tight. But her vaginal walls were covered with rough spots, and the grainy texture rubbed on his shaft, sending chills down his spine with every little movement she made.

“How does it feel inside of me?” Sophie murmured, remaining still as she watched Luka’s reaction with a satisfied look on her face. “Just entering me is an unbearable pleasure, is it not?”

“Ah... this is intense...” was all the young Hero managed to say in response as he focused to avoid coming too soon. The Queen giggled slightly, her laughter sending ripples through her body and causing Luka to inhale sharply again. “Ah! Don’t do that! I won’t be able to hold on!”

“Don’t worry about that,” she cooed in his ear. “Feel free to come anytime you like. We have all night, after all... I’m not letting you go until morning.”

Those words sent a shiver through Luka’s body, though in anticipation or fear, he could not say. Inhaling deeply, he grasped Sophie’s broad hips and began to move, focusing on the feelings her pussy gave him. She looked down at him in surprise.

“Taking charge? How bold,” she commented, relaxing a bit. “Very well, do with me as you will. I have never been in a passive position before. It could be an interesting change.”

Having gotten her approval, Luka shifted around and reversed their positions, with her leaning against the couch and him being on top of her. With a content cooing noise, the Queen wrapped her wings tightly around his body, intertwined her legs with his own, and allowed him to do as he pleased.

With their positions changed, Luka began to thrust slowly. He had no illusions about his ability to last; the amazing pleasure he felt from the Queen’s pussy was far too great for him to be able to do anything but delay the inevitable by a few seconds, but he was determined to at least try and show her a good time. It was largely a matter of pride.

As he thrust into her, Queen Sophie watched his face, fascinated. He was sweating in exertion, trying to stave off his orgasm in an obvious attempt to please her, and she rather liked the way the sweat made his skin shine in the light of the candles illuminating her house. She was, however, growing impatient. What she truly wanted was to savor his climax as he exploded inside her. Deciding to wrest just a little bit of control back, she pulled him deeper into her, drawing a moan of protest from him, and then suddenly shifted the muscles inside her.

Luka let out a strangled cry as he suddenly felt Sophie tighten right around his sensitive tip, deep inside her body. Gritting his teeth, he felt himself rapidly pushed towards an orgasm, and with a loud moan, he went over the edge, coming hard inside the Queen’s waiting pussy.

Sophie hummed a pleased tune as she felt him spill his seed into her. She held on tightly to his shaking body, slowly milking him as he came. Luka found himself unable to speak, overwhelmed by pleasure as she contracted around him, squeezing and massaging his dick to draw every drop of his semen out. Holding on to her soft body like a drowning man to a piece of wood, he rode out his intense climax, his sounds of pleasure muffled as he pushed his face into her bosom.

Finally, his orgasm subsided, and he relaxed into the Queen’s embrace, exhaling slowly. Sophie decided to let him catch his breath. She rather liked the way he’d taken charge, and chose not to wear him out too badly for the time being.

“I’m impressed,” she murmured into his ear. “You lasted an admirable amount of time. This is turning out to be a very enjoyable night... rest for a while, then we can see about seeking out more pleasure together.”

Still firmly inside her, Luka moaned in agreement, snuggling against her breasts. Much like the rest of her body, they were soft and downy, and he felt as if he’d never get tired of the feel of them. Shifting around, his eyes fell on one of the Queen’s nipples, and he grinned mischievously as he got an idea. Reaching out, he gently took the exposed nipple in his mouth, and nibbled at it with his teeth, mindful to not exert too much pressure. The action drew a startled chirp from the Queen and caused her to tighten up around his sensitive penis, which in turn caused him to grunt and barely stop himself from biting down on the sensitive nub between his lips.

Paying more attention, he began to lightly stimulate the nipple in his mouth, licking and sucking at it. Sophie let out a pleased warbling noise, and wrapped her wings just a little tighter around him. Encouraged by how she seemed to like it, Luka started paying attention to her other breast as well, alternating between the two with his nibbling and sucking. Sophie responded by contracting a little more forcefully around his dick, causing it to rapidly harden again. She looked down at him, somewhat amused.

“I thought you needed rest?” she playfully teased him. “You appear to be rather lively... and bold, too. Shall we continue?”

Luka didn’t reply, instead straightening up and freeing himself from her wings’ tight embrace. Grasping her waist with both hands, he took a deep breath, then began thrusting firmly and forcefully inside her, drawing a cry of surprised delight from the Harpy. Luka gritted his teeth as he moved: he was still very sensitive from his orgasm, and the rough feeling of her insides made the friction almost painful with how much it stimulated him. He decided that was good - it would help him last longer.

Falling into a rhythm, Luka began to plunge in and out of Queen Sophie’s inviting hole, focusing all his strength of mind and body towards giving her a good time. The Harpy appeared to greatly enjoy this, as she began letting out hoots of pleasure whenever he drove himself into her. Reaching up, she rested her wings on his shoulders, and watched him intently as he moved, her lips parted slightly as her breathing accelerated.

Even with his best efforts, the sheer pleasure provided by Sophie’s body soon became too much for him again, and he found himself nearing another orgasm. Accelerating his pumping a bit, he put all his strength into a few last thrusts before burying himself deeply into her and letting out a long, drawn out sigh as he came. Once again, he felt Sophie begin to squeeze and milk him as he exploded inside her, multiplying the pleasure to a point where he found it hard to think coherently.

As he wound down from his second climax, the Queen drew him to her and embraced him tightly again with her wings, still contracting deliciously around him to squeeze out the last drops of his semen. When her milking finally subsided, they lay unmoving for a while, regaining control of their breathing. The Queen made an odd, low-pitched sound as she rested, as if she were singing softly in her sleep. Luka found the sound very soothing; it was almost like a lullaby.

After a few minutes of rest, Luka attempted to straighten himself, but the Queen suddenly shifted under him and sent his world upside-down as she reversed their positions, straddling him and pinning his back to the couch with his penis still inside her. Looking at him, she licked her lips seductively.

“Now it is my turn to be in charge,” she breathed into his ear in a low, hungry tone, causing him to shiver and quickly harden inside her again. “Just lie back and enjoy yourself. You will not be disappointed...”

Following those words, she began a slow, sensuous grinding motion, tightening her insides rhythmically and massaging his penis in a ripple-like motion. This time, Luka was unable to restrain a cry of pleasure and screwed his eyes shut. The sensation was much more intense than before, and he realized that until that very moment, the Queen had largely allowed him to indulge in his pleasure. Now, however, she was doing with him as she saw fit, and it was clear that she intended to wring out every last drop of sperm he had for the rest of the night.

As Sophie continued her sensual dance, more cries and moans escaped Luka’s lips as pleasure overwhelmed him, and she smiled, listening to the sounds with satisfaction as if they were a fine melody. She did love hearing her mate express his pleasure, and took pride in the fact she could force those sounds out so effortlessly. Leaning into him, she enveloped him in her soft wings again and slightly picked up the pace, coaxing another pleased cry out of the young Hero’s lips as her ample breasts rubbed against his chest, becoming slick with his sweat.

For a while, she kept teasing him with her body, bringing him close to an orgasm and then slowing down or stopping completely, until he was dripping with sweat and tightly wrapping his arms around her, gazing at her lustfully. Then, deciding she’d teased him enough, she firmly dropped down on him, driving him as deep within her as he would go, and began mercilessly squeezing down on his aching dick. Overwhelmed by the sudden stimulation, Luka let out a loud cry and went rigid as he came again, holding onto her as he emptied himself in her receptive body. Pulling him more tightly against her, the Queen once more rippled around his shaft, milking out all his seed as she hummed contentedly.

Afterwards, Sophie leaned on Luka’s chest as the two rested, their breath shallow and uneven. A few moments passed, after which she raised her head a little and looked at him, smiling faintly.

“Mmmm... that felt nice, did it not?” she murmured. At Luka’s breathless nod, her smile turned seductive. “But we still have the rest of the night available. You aren’t that tired just yet, are you?”

“...as my Lady Sophie wishes,” was Luka’s reply after a moment of silence. “After all, I made my choice...”

With a happy laugh, Queen Sophie straightened up and resumed moving in a slow, rocking motion, causing Luka to moan under her.

He knew he’d be completely worn out the next day, but he didn’t mind. He’d chosen his road and was content this way.

----

Luka woke up very late the next morning, awakened by the flapping sounds of Harpies flying outside. Shifting tiredly, he looked around, blinking, and realized that at some time during the previous night, he’d ended up in the Queen’s own bed. He imagined she had put him there after wearing him out completely. Sitting halfway up, he winced as he felt a dull, throbbing pain in his groin. He was still very sore from the all-nighter with Queen Sophie, and the weakness he was experiencing was even more pronounced than what he felt after his encounter with the Elf twins. He definitely wouldn’t be going anywhere very far today.

As he tried to decide what to do, he heard a shuffling noise from the window, and saw Alice peek in. Seeing him, she smirked.

“Up and at 'em, Fairytale Hero,” she called out to him. “You’re a father-to-be now. You can’t be lazy. Time to rise and shine!”

“I’d like to do as you say, but I’m afraid the most I could manage would be crawl and moan,” Luka replied with a tired smile. “I don’t remember feeling this worn out before in my whole life.”

“I’m not surprised,” the Echidna commented. “Your partner was a Queen-class monster. Their passion can be overwhelming, sometimes fatally so. There’s a reason why Queens and other powerful monsters generally seek out the strongest humans when looking for long-term mates; normal men wouldn’t survive. Even then, all but the strongest men tend to be incapacitated in short order when having sex with a monster that powerful. Which reminds me,” she added with a mischievous smile, “the Queen has been all too happy to praise your performance. It seems you left an impression.”

“Praise? The moment she got serious, I pretty much lost it,” Luka muttered. “Look at me - I can’t even stand, and I’m barely able to sit up.”

“Believe it or not, that’s actually a truly impressive feat of endurance,” she informed him. “Most men would be unable to move after their first orgasm, and nearly all of them would be unconscious the whole day afterwards. That you were active and participating for as long as you did, and are already awake now, is a testament to your sheer toughness.”

“...is there any detail of our night together the Queen hasn’t shared yet?” Luka complained, somewhat embarrassed at the idea that his sexual exploits were common knowledge in the whole village. Alice laughed.

“You still don’t get it, do you?” she said between giggles. “Harpies share everything. Even their definition of ‘husband’ is closer to ‘shared mate’. Many, many Harpies share their husbands with others... the especially desirable ones are shared with the whole village. The Queen wasn’t kidding when she said she was being selfish - normally, a catch such as you would be made available to all Harpies, so that your genes would spread as much as possible and they could have as many strong, healthy children as they can.”

“...seriously?” Luka said, blinking. “So, if the Queen hadn’t come out and said ‘Hands off, he’s mine’, I’d be the village stud by now?”

“Yup,” Alice nodded with a smile. Luka shivered. He wasn’t sure whether such a thing would’ve been heaven or hell, but he was fairly sure he’d be incapacitated for the rest of his life if it happened. Of course, he could think of worse fates.

As he shook his head to try and wake up completely, Alice appeared to have a sudden thought, and a rather evil grin appeared on her face.

“Oh, Fairytale Hero and Dad-to-Be Luka?” she called out in a sickeningly sweet voice. Luka shot her an annoyed glare. He could already tell she was going to try and irritate him somehow. Ignoring his glare, Alice continued. “How do you plan to explain your imminent paternity to your excessively protective big sister?”

Luka stared at her as he felt his jaw go slack. Apparently, there was something he hadn’t considered in this whole situation. Looking out of the window at the sky, he summed up his thoughts in two words.

“Well, shit.”

----
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Monster Girl Saga