“Are you done?” Nathan said flatly. Tharban pushed again, his face turning red with effort.
Nathan yawned, even raising one hand to his face. “I have things to do. Important people to meet. Maybe you should do this with somebody who enjoys it?”
Tharban recoiled as if he had been physically struck. His eyes widened, and snapped over to Nurevia. She blushed and twisted, sticking her tongue out coyly.
“Do not,” Tharban growled at Nurevia, who gasped with pleasure.
“I’m sure the palace has a private room you can borrow,” Nathan said. “Maybe ask one of the guards?”
He gestured to the nearby guards, who appeared completely dumbfounded by what was happening.
“Enough,” Tharban said. “Nurevia, we’re leaving.”
Then he strode off. Nurevia followed, but strayed close to Nathan. Her eyes were glued to him and were wide open.
When she passed him, her hand gripped his crotch and she whispered, “Who knew you’d end up with the biggest dick in the family?”
Tharban whirled and snarled at Nurevia. She giggled and pranced over to him.
“Hurry up,” he snapped.
His arm grabbed her and pulled her forward. Nurevia went flying, crashing into the palace floor and tumbling head over heels. Her head slammed into the stone tiles multiple times before she stopped.
Anna gasped, while the other Champions watched grimly. She looked at Nathan, as if to demand him to intervene.
He shrugged. “She’s a Champion. It’s not like that’s going to hurt her much.”
True to his words, Nurevia got up and dusted herself off. Her eyes followed the retreating Tharban for several seconds.
Then she turned back to Nathan and gave him a fluttering wave with her fingers. A moment later, she vanished from the hall with Tharban.
“Nathan, are you alright?” Anna asked, voice soft.
“I’m fine,” he said, and gave her and the others a smile.
“But—”
“Let’s go see Alice,” he said, and took the lead. The others followed, despite their looks of concern.
Royal knights guarded the actual throne room, which was a smaller room behind the grand hall. Nathan had never met or seen the royal knights before, but he knew of them.
To some extent, his own knights were modeled after the royal knights here. The Empire knew that ordinary soldiers were no match for Champions and Bastions. Despite this, they needed to protect the archdukes and the emperor.
That meant training knights and spellblades far beyond the capability of normal soldiers, and giving them the best equipment a nation could forge. While a duogem or trigem Champion could still defeat the royal knights, they posed a genuine threat to them. The same principle applied to fighting demons, which Nathan used when building his own defensive forces.
In the future, it became standard practice for fighting off Messengers and demonic hordes. Losing entire armies of poorly equipped and trained soldiers ceased to be viable after the mass evacuation of the Federation. Entire families had been buried near the Gharrick Mountains, or their bodies lost entirely. The people refused to accept such massive losses again.
But right now, most portals could be handled with Champions and ordinary soldiers. Large scale warfare between nations was only ramping up, with the recent wars being some of the largest in centuries. Nathan had an edge that he’d soon lose.
After a short wait, the knights let them into the throne room. Alice waited inside with a duogem Champion and a number of royal knights. She tried to shoo them away, but they refused.
“If he was Leopold, would you still insist on staying?” she said. “His Majesty trusts Nathan, and he is a loyal Bastion of Omria. Please give us some privacy.”
After many protests, the knights and the Champion moved into the antechambers of the throne room. Nathan suspected they could still hear them.
At least, they could before Narime’s tails shifted and cast a ward over the room.
“There, we should be protected from any spying eyes and ears,” Narime said with a smirk, then frowned. “At least, non-Bastion ones. I do not promise protection from Bastion Maylis.”
“I’d be scared if you did,” Nathan replied. “You’ve been practicing your ascended magic lately, but we’ve already established that Bastion wards are more powerful than your magic.”
“For now,” Narime said.
“Ahem,” Alice said.
Nathan turned to her.
The princess wore a stunning black and gold dress, which puffed out around her waist. Nathan imagined that it must be rather stuffy underneath, but it suited her. She seemed to radiate beauty, and the golden emblems of the imperial family suited her, particularly with her blonde hair.
A moment later, his appreciation was interrupted as she leaped into his arms and tackled him in a hug.
“It’s great to see you, Nathan,” Alice said. “I’ve missed you.”
Every eye in the room bore into Nathan.
He coughed. “It’s good to see you as well, Your Imperial Highness.”
Alice stepped back, tilted her head, and gave him a smile that stretched across her face but didn’t reach her eyes.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t quite hear that. Could you please repeat yourself, Nathan?” Alice asked, her voice saccharine sweet.
“It’s good to see you, Alice,” he said with a smirk.
She poked him in the chest. “Much better. You’re not Uncle Leopold. I won’t let you get away with calling me by my title.”
“What about around your grandparents?” Nathan asked.
“Hah, very funny,” she said, rolling her eyes. “Given how much both seem to like you, I doubt they’ll care. You’re the second coming of Leopold.”
Fyre’s ears pricked up for some reason. She opened her mouth to say something, but Anna shushed her.
The meeting with Alice was mostly to sort out their visit. They organized their schedule, where Anna was staying, confirmed names of interesting nobles, and which days the Diet was actually intending to talk about important things.
Nathan refused to sit and listen to a bunch of nobles debate about taxation policy. While Alice and Anna insisted there were some important discussions to be had about trade taxes, he stared them down.
“I’m a Bastion. Do the trade taxes have anything to do with military affairs? No? Then I want nothing to do with them,” he declared.
They pouted at him, but gave up. Why they cared was beyond him.
Eventually, the ambush came up.
“We were attacked on the way here,” Anna said.
Alice stared at her, then Nathan. “By…?”
“We don’t know,” he said, giving Anna a look.
Anna rolled her eyes. “An assassin from Falmir.”
Fuck.
Alice went white.
A moment later, Anna realized her mistake. “Oh, uh—”
“What?” Alice gasped. “But—”
“It was a false flag attack, intended to frame the Nationalists,” Nathan said, trying to salvage the situation. “The Imperial Spymaster knew it was happening, but only intervened afterward. The entire situation is steeped in intrigue and is something we shouldn’t be discussing here.”
He glared at Anna, then waved an arm to gesture to the walls.
Calming down some, Alice nodded. “That… seems very possible. And I agree.” She shook herself, then asked Nathan something different, “The knights said Tharban was here earlier.”
“He was,” Nathan said.
“And?”
“And he acted like Tharban, then left.”
Sen barked with laughter. “You mean he tried everything possible to provoke you, then got pissy when you didn’t fight back. I wish I had some way to record his face when he tried to knock you down.”
“That was fantastic,” Sunstorm said, to nods.
Alice pouted. “So I missed you showing up your father?”
“It wasn’t that impr
essive. He said a lot of rather awful crap,” Nathan admitted. “I’ll probably take notes next time I want to start a fight.”
“I can’t believe you didn’t respond to the last one. I think even Leopold would have gotten mad,” Anna said. “Kuda told me you had a good poker face, but now I’m definitely never playing you.”
Given Anna refused to play him in most board and card games anyway, that wasn’t much of a change. She hated losing, and Nathan had spent many boring years on the front whiling away the days playing games.
These days, he mostly played with Seraph and Narime in games from Kurai. He had yet to master the game they called shogi.
After they discussed some additional matters, it was time to retire for the afternoon. Anna needed to organize meetings and read documents for the Diet sittings. Alice appeared to be doing half the job of the Emperor already. And the rest of his Champions could do with some time to settle in.
“So, who stays here tonight?” Sen asked, staring at Nathan.
Alice tilted her head. “Oh, of course you’re keeping a Champion with you. My apologies. I’ll prepare a separate bedroom for them.”
Everybody stared at her. Alice’s face slowly reddened, and she looked down.
“Oh, right,” she muttered.
“Yeah, there’s not a chance in hell I’m missing a chance to keep Nathan to myself. The calendar’s way too full these days,” Sen said flatly. “Plus, no Fei means I won’t be rudely woken up in the morning by a catgirl demanding a shower and for her tail and hair to be combed.”
Sunstorm’s and Narime’s eyes widened. It appears they hadn’t realized what it meant to not have Fei around.
“Wow. She’s that bad?” Anna asked.
“How have you missed her behavior?” Narime said in disbelief.
“I’m an early riser.”
The Champions decided on the order of who stayed with Nathan through chance—they tried to guess a number that Anna wrote down.
Naturally, Narime won because she cheated. Sen and Sunstorm came second and third respectively.
How badly would they assault Narime once they learned that the fox’s magic allowed her to read the writing on the paper?
Fyre, for one, seemed suspicious of the fox. She gave Narime an odd look, as if unsure if she should speak up. But she didn’t, and they all left.
After they separated, a guard led Nathan to his room. He learned it was next door to Alice’s room. Sadly, there wasn’t a door connecting them and the wards between each room prevented teleportation or other shenanigans.
Nathan stepped inside his bedroom and admired the palatial size. A small house could fit inside the room.
Then he froze.
A black door stood in the corner.
Kadria had somehow followed him here. Even in the middle of a sanctuary of Omria, the Messenger’s presence made itself known.
Another part of Nathan’s faith cracked, as he realized just how weak the goddess’s presence was. Perhaps the power in the palace really was just a binding stone. Maybe an ancient Bastion had ground up a binding stone and used it in the building material.
Because if this palace really was a sanctified place of Omria, Kadria shouldn’t be here.
“What’s wrong? Your expression turned foul for a moment,” Narime asked as they sat on the bed.
“Maybe I’m just tired,” he said.
He slumped back on the bed with a soft thump. Narime’s tails hovered over his face. Her hands crept onto his stomach and chest, and quickly began to undo his uniform.
“Well, there is a solution to that,” she said with a giggle. “But I do want to check on you. Facing down Tharban like that must have been hard. He’s still your father. I can’t imagine how it must have made you feel.”
She probably couldn’t. Mystic foxes typically don’t know their parents, as they were raised communally.
After everything Nathan had cocked up today, he at least remembered that Narime hadn’t told him that yet.
“Maybe. But Tharban’s a monster. It’s easy not to think of him as my father,” he said.
“You still have one. You have a chance to know him. That’s more than…” she trailed off with a sigh. “Foxes don’t know their parents. I’m also one of the rare foxes without a twin or triplet. If you have a chance, will you try to reconcile with Tharban? Like you did with Torneus?”
Nathan stared at her in disbelief. “You’re joking right?”
“Is he that bad?”
“You heard him right? And saw him? He’s wearing actual beastkin tails around his neck. Torneus had the right idea, even if we ended up as enemies and he lost his way at some point. But Tharban is… It doesn’t matter what his sob story is—if he even has one—because you can’t justify that sort of evil,” Nathan said.
“It’s not heresy,” Narime said.
“I’d argue it’s worse.”
She stared at him.
That anger from earlier bubbled within Nathan. It bothered him, but he didn’t think it was his or what drove him to dislike Tharban so much.
He wasn’t really Nathan Straub, after all. When Kadria brought him to this world, he had overwritten the personality of the original Nathan. In mind and spirit, he remained Nathan Martel. He even looked like his old self, for the most part.
Nathan hadn’t really been disowned or made to feel inferior by Tharban. Those implanted memories weren’t really his.
That was why he so dispassionately dismissed the brute. Nathan cared about Nurevia, but Tharban was nothing more a political enemy who needed to be crushed before he brought down the Empire. Letting him get inside Nathan’s head was a mistake.
“I think we might need to talk about these secrets of yours sooner rather than later,” Narime muttered. Then she smiled at him as she straddled his waist. “But I’m glad that you don’t appear conflicted. I want you to talk to me when you do, Nathan. I’m more than your Champion or lover, Nathan. There is so much we can share with each other.”
Then, as if to illustrate her point, Narime’s fingers slipped into his pants and gripped his hardening cock.
“And I think there’s something in here I’d like you to share right now.” She giggled as she slipped her panties off.
Her fingers tickled his very tip as she pumped his shaft. Every motion delicate and loaded with pleasure as she played his cock like an instrument. He groaned, feeling the heat of her hand through his length.
“We only just got here,” he said, pretending to resist. “I’m not even fully on the bed.”
That much was true. He was hanging off the edge of the bed as she crouched over him.
But she merely smirked as her fingers brought him up to full mast. She pulled one of his hands to her pussy.
“All the more reason to break the bed in,” Narime cooed. “And we’re both very happy to do so. See?”
She held his hand up, which was sticky with her juices. He pulled his fingers apart, and translucent strands dripped from them onto his palm.
Her lips captured his in a kiss as she leaned into him. Huge silver tails closed around them, enclosing him in a fluffy prison that tickled his arms, neck, and head.
Pulling away, Narime looked down at him with a smile and eyes filled with expectation. She pressed herself against the tip of his cock and let out a soft sigh.
“Shall you, or shall I?” she asked.
“It’s your turn, I think,” Nathan said. “Pretty sure I ruined you last time.”
She pouted. “I wasn’t ruined.”
“You don’t even remember Sen interrupting us.”
“That’s… Fine. But that’s different. You just got a little intense,” Narime said. “You’re so much more experienced at this than me. I can’t take it when you pound me while stroking my tails.”
“Uh huh. So, how about you insert it?” he suggested.
She continued pouting, but gave in.
His cock slid inside her, until Narime sheathed the whole thing inside hers
elf.
“Fuck,” she said. “I’m still not used to the size.”
“It gets—”
“Don’t you dare suggest making it smaller,” she said. “I’m already annoyed that you shrunk it once.”
Slowly, Narime started moving. At first, she ground herself against him, her juices building in a slick pool on his crotch and stomach. Then she started bouncing, which did beautiful things to her tits and fox ears.
Her tongue lolled out of her mouth as she slammed her hips into his in a long, smooth motion. Soft, happy moans escaped her lips. His cock popped in and out, pressing tightly against her insides and growing more and more covered with their mixed fluids.
“More,” she half-moaned, half-screamed.
Narime picked up the pace, and Nathan responded as she squealed with pleasure. She bounced on his cock as he reshaped her insides with his length using rapid pumps. Thrust after thrust brought them both closer to climax.
“Inside!” she moaned, gripping Nathan tightly as she collapsed against him.
Her legs grew taut. Her insides contracted around him, trying to milk him. Cute fox ears twitched in his vision as she moaned sweetly.
He kept pumping into her, pushing himself to climax as fast as possible. Narime kept squealing with each thrust. Her warmth and wetness wrapped around his cock and her sweet arousal wafted through his nose.
Then he filled her. Her back arched, and all of her tails stuck up in the air at once. They quivered, as if dancing with pleasure. He made her entire body shudder with each shot he put in her, until she melted against him.
The door opened.
“Nathan, I wanted to ask about earlier—” Alice said as she walked in.
The room froze. Nathan regretted not locking the door.
Alice’s eyes fixed on his cock, which was firmly planted in Narime. As if taunting the princess, Narime raised her hips and he popped out. A flood of white seed drooled out of Narime as she moaned, and it poured all over his cock.
“Wow,” Alice said, face so red that Nathan worried she was about to pass out.
A moment later, she stopped staring at him and left the room.
Narime moaned, then grinned at Nathan. “Maybe we should invite her?”
Heretic Spellblade 3 Page 10
