Dragon's Tale 25

Despite the exhilarating experience of tricking about a couple of centuries worth of experienced legionaries —as far as I could tell— I was not in the best of moods. Yes, the adventure had been much less exhausting than I had predicted, likely because stepping into the realm of a Sorcerer improved both my magical and physical abilities significantly —enough that I wasn’t tired after a twenty-four-hour chase where I had to continue casting repeatedly— but that didn’t mean I enjoyed wading through thick mud while suffering the rain, not using any magical solution to avoid detection. The rain only stopped a couple of hours ago, and the ground was still covered in mud, making it a very uncomfortable trek. 

So, I was understandably miffed when I saw eight tribal warriors trying to strong-arm Aviada to leave Lillian to their tender mercy. 

Still, despite the annoyance, I didn’t rush in immediately. I wanted to observe the situation first, because it was a good opportunity to understand the structure of my supposed ally. The fact that the escort they had sent had been harassing Astrid with clearly bad intentions about Lillian had put their reliability into question, but with the legionaries behind us, I didn’t exactly have a wide range of options. I observed to understand the reason for their actions. 

There were multiple possibilities. The first possibility was it was an intentional order from Matron Helena, maybe to measure the loyalty of Astrid or understand my temper better. I would have been glad if that was the case, but unfortunately, the lecherous smiles on the faces of tribal warriors were hard to fake. They really had bad intentions. 

So, it was a choice between an order from another leader, and the rogue action of their soldiers. Neither possibility inspired trust. I was either going to walk into a situation where an unknown number of warriors would be following orders from anyone other than my nominal ally and do their best to work against me, or I would face a camp full of barely-controlled horny warriors while escorting two sexy women. 

I was tempted to kill them and write off Matron Helena as an ally. I would have probably done so if I knew that sending a cohort after me strained the capabilities of my enemy, which unfortunately wasn’t the case. I still didn’t have the slightest information about them. I needed allies, no matter how fractured or unreliable they were. 

“Hey, don’t come near,” Astrid cried when two men separated from the group and walked toward them intimidatingly. Astrid stood near Lillian, raising her hand, which glowed threateningly. When the men didn’t stop, she let the spell fly, and a blue orb hit one of the attackers’ stomach, leaving him curled on the floor. 

I was surprised, not only because Astrid didn’t even flinch before threatening her own supposed allies to defend Lillian, but also the spell she chose to do so. She had used a simple magic orb, one that every first-year student could cast because it was a simple but effective self-defense spell with little chance of accidentally killing the target. However, it was taught in Halls of Saturn, and definitely wasn’t something Astrid would know. 

Nice, I thought. Apparently, rather than wasting their trip, Lillian was teaching Astrid magic, yet another sign of their growing relationship. However, I didn’t have the time to tease them about it, because the other attacker had raised his spear and shouted and charged. “You bitch! I’ll make your beg for death!”

The girls could have easily handled that, but the six men behind him —all lifting their own spears— was a different subject. They looked reluctant, clearly unhappy that things had devolved into this point, but at this point, things had devolved enough to push them into the fight. While Lillian was strong enough to take them, she lacked the practical experience to fight against multiple opponents. Moreover, I doubted she could do so without killing them, and I needed them alive. Killing even one would destroy my already fragile alliance with Matron Helena, no matter the reason. 

“Can I help you, gentleman,” I said even as I waved my hand, and an earth barrier rose in front of Lillian and Astrid. Impressive, but nothing a mage —albeit a strong one— couldn’t do. The tribal warriors would have easily circled around the barrier since it was a half-circle, but they were smart enough to stand their ground and wait. 

Well, almost all of them were smart enough to do so. The hothead that had been leading the attack turned his attention to me, his face drowning in anger. “Who are you, Roman fucker, and how dare you to interrupt me teaching a lesson to those bitches.”

I chuckled at his words as I walked closer, but Lillian tensed. She was familiar enough with me to realize there was no humor in my chuckle. “I’m guessing that you already know who I am, even sent here to escort me,” I said lazily as I closed in. “The question is, why are you acting like a rabid dog and ignoring orders despite the risk of failing the mission,” I smirked. “Your leader must be rather pathetic if he can’t reign a rabid dog like you.” 

“You dare to insult Great Virato,” he shouted as he cocked his arm back, ready to throw his spear. “I’ll fucking skewer you.” 

Two of his friends dashed toward him, clearly trying to prevent him from attacking, though I noticed one of them had a dismayed expression on his face when his angry friend shouted the name of his leader, which reinforced my assumptions about the fractured state of my allies. It was better than a camp full of uncontrollable warriors, but not by a huge margin. The angry one still threw his spear before his friends could prevent him, but I dodged it easily. She wasn’t exactly an excellent sharpshooter. “Ientius, stop!” called one of his friends, but realizing he was about to be manhandled, Ientius rushed forward, pulling his sword on the way. 

I sighed and continued to walk, not bothering to cast a spell. Instead, I leaned back when he swung his sword, easily dodging his clumsy attack, before I stomped his shin. The cracking of the bone exploded in the opening. “Fucker, I’ll kill-” he shouted, but I silenced him with a punch that sent him asleep. 

“Sorry about that,” I said as I continued to walk forward. Killing him not an option, as it would have been ruined the potential alliance, but there was no way I would let him get away after what he tried with my girls. The rest of the group watched me with wary eyes, and one of them gestured the rest to stay back. He was probably the leader. 

“I hope you don’t take Ientius’ actions to the heart,” he spoke with forced calmness. He clearly wanted to make an issue of it, but my display of skill had been too overwhelming, showing that I was strong enough to cast a spell to immobilize all of them, not to mention my ability to take an armed and angry man without a weapon. They could still ruin this alliance by attacking, of course, but luckily, the leader looked smart enough to 

“Pests will be pests,” I answered with a shrug, indicating my intent of not attacking as humiliatingly as possible. Since they went their own way to provoke me, I had no intention to accept their lazy excuse immediately. I said nothing until I arrived next to the girls, who were looking at me with relief. 

“You’re back,” Astrid whispered in relief. Lillian said nothing, just grabbed my hand and squeezed hard, showing that she was affected by the threat of kidnapping. 

I squeezed her hand while I turned my attention to Astrid and whispered. “Should we continue with the alliance, or the situation is different.” 

“I don’t know,” Astrid murmured, hesitant. “We have only communicated through the letters, and the risk of interception was too big to share anything sensitive.”  

“Still, you know her better than I do. Give me your opinion,” I said. 

“I think we should go,” Astrid answered. “The guys that attacked us are from the Audatus tribe. We have occasionally traded with them, but the relationship between our tribes was sporadic considering the great distance. Also, we don’t share the same culture. They are a Gallic tribe rather than a Germanic one.” 

“So, we’re looking for a camp much bigger than the loyal warriors of your tribe,” I answered. When I considered the alliance with Astrid’s teacher, I wasn’t expecting to find myself in the middle of a tribal political quagmire. Still, it was better than blindly running away. Some spears between us and the legionaries were definitely welcome. 

“Probably,” Astrid answered passionately. “I know the situation doesn’t look good, but she wouldn’t have asked me to come if things were truly grave. She must have a plan to guarantee our safety.” 

“We don’t have a lot of options,” I whispered to her, before I turned to our escorts, who were busy crafting makeshift stretchers for their wounded comrades. “So, boys. Should we get moving?” 

“Give us a minute,” answered their leader, clearly dissatisfied, but not willing to escalate. He didn’t ask our help to use magic to ease their suffering, and we certainly didn’t offer. 

We started moving after five minutes. They walked in front of us, and we followed them, but made sure that we left a distance, something they were happy with. Neither group wanted a sudden break of violence. 

An hour later, we stopped for a break. They had offered us food, and we kindly turned it down. I didn’t think they were stupid enough to try to poison us —and I had the skills to detect it— but it was more about underlining the lack of good feelings between the groups. Since they were at fault, I didn’t want to seem weak by forgiving them easily. Moral high ground was a good card to have even among the tribes. 

“I have bad news,” I whispered to Lillian when we sat down and I cast a silencing ward. Since things had evolved into such a point, I decided to be more open to Lillian, because we couldn’t afford a mistake like trying to contact her family in a sudden desire. 

“More bad news?” Lillian answered, her face contorted. 

“Unfortunately,” I answered. “I still don’t know who your kidnapper is, but I’m sure that the Captain is not the ringleader, or a hired hand. Whoever requested it is strong. Strong enough to arrange the presence of two centuries following us.” 

“That doesn’t sound too bad,” Lillian answered with a frown. “My family could certainly have a similar clout do so.” 

“You’re missing the point,” I answered with a sigh. “Yes, your family can do it, even my uncle could do it, but only back in Britanium, at the seat of their power. And I doubt that even they can mobilize half-a-cohort for a personal errand. Certainly not in a week.” As I spoke, Lillian’s face lost her color. “I’m almost certain that we’re not in the center of our mysterious enemy’s power, because if so, he would have sent his personal forces.” 

“Meaning we’re dealing with someone strong enough to influence legions in another territory,” Lillian completed. “Maybe someone in Rome?” 

“Either that, or we’re dealing with a Governor of a territory.” 

“My family doesn’t have a feud with anyone that strong. Why would they suddenly fight against us? And even if they did, they are clearly strong. Why would they need a hostage?” Lillian asked. 

“They probably don’t,” I answered, making her eyes widen. “I’m starting to suspect that your kidnapping is less about your family, and more about something special to you. Maybe a unique trait, maybe some bloodline you receive from your family.” 

“My mother,” Lillian gasped in shock. I quirked my eyebrow, and she explained. “My mother is the last member of a small family that was living on the coast, but her family collapsed. But since their hereditary traits were similar to some of our powers, my grandfather allowed her marriage despite her limited dowry. Maybe it’s about that?” Lillian offered. 

“Might be,” I said, unable to let out a frustrated growl. I hated the feeling of being sieged, and after years of subtly building a defense against insurmountable odds —and succeed— I found myself in an even worse situation. My anger must have been apparent on my face, because Lillian flinched and pulled back, looking like she was about to cry. “I’m not angry at you,” I said even as I pulled her tight against my body, and kissed her gently. 

She responded with a searing, desperate kiss of her own, her tongue conveying her relief. Understandable, because we have just talked about how she had a deadly enemy specifically gunning for her, so she probably feared that I would leave her. Luckily for her, despite everything, I was a stubborn bastard, and wouldn’t abandon her like that. “You’re my hero,” she whispered as she pulled back for a breather. 

“Then why don’t you reward your little hero,” I said, blasting her with a crooked smile. 

Her smile was no less naughty. “It’s a pity that we could be seen easily-” she started, only for a mist to surround us, cutting her words. 

“How about now?” I answered even as I cast a couple more spells, one to clean our bodies simultaneously, getting rid of all the mud and grime, one to clean and solidify the ground we were sitting on. “We have twenty minutes before we started to move again,” I reminded her. 

“Hmm,” she murmured naughtily, immediately making my shaft rock hard. It wasn’t surprising. If there was one drawback about my special Sorcerer ascension, it was feeling horny all damn time, getting higher more magic I used. I had no idea whether it was dangerous, but it was certainly uncomfortable. 

However, Lillian was sexy enough to make me hard with a whisper even without that, so it was a moot point. She somehow managed to look sexy even wearing very practical and baggy travel clothes, without any makeup, and her hair gathered in a simple ponytail. “Anything special for your reward, milord?” she asked throatily. 

“No, my dear damsel,” I answered. “You’re the one in control, feel free to act as you desire.” 

“Interesting,” Lillian gasped in a way I liked very much, and leaned forward, her hands grasping the edges of my pants before freeing it. “Someone is very enthusiastic,” she said. I was about to answer, when she pressed her fingers to my lips. “Silence, we don’t have much time,” she said in a surprising show of initiative, amusing enough for me to let her get away with it. “Let me show you my appreciation better than words can portray.” 

I wasn’t surprised when her mouth closed around my girth with great enthusiasm, though the dance of her tongue was enough to force a moan off me.

However, her next action was definitely surprising. She took a deep breath before suddenly pushing herself down, easily able to swallow half of my shaft with one move. And even better, she kept her beautiful blue eyes open as she did so, maintaining eye contact. “Excellent start,” I commented, and her hands tightened on my thighs, using her grip to swallow my length even deeper, the crown slipping to her throat bit by bit, her gagging making me glad that I had included a silencing charm to the deal.  

I enjoyed the feeling of her tongue when she pulled back for a breather. “Such a beautiful reward.” 

“You haven’t seen anything yet,” she said, pulling out momentarily before pushing herself even deeper, forcing herself to my shaft. And when she failed to swallow all, she surprised me further by casting a spell to push herself deeper, until her nose was touching my skin.

“Such dedication,” I said gleefully. “Honey, you’re definitely a damsel that deserves to be saved.” She didn’t pull back to answer, but the shine in her eyes reflected her happiness to my compliment. As I looked at her, I struggled to imagine just weeks ago, she was yet another bitchy noble who thought she was above everyone else. And now, she was here, enthusiastically gobbling my cock to reward me, which, I had to admit, was an excellent way to remove any lingering resentment. I was definitely happy to forgive the rest of our graduating class if they were to be half-as-enthusiastic, though the male half needed to ask their sisters or cousins to help them —or mothers, if they were still particularly hot. 

I reached to Lillian’s body, ready to touch her body, only for her to slap it away. Apparently, she wanted me to stay passive during her treatment, not that I had any problems with that. I continued to stay passively while she forced herself to swallow my full length repeatedly, pushing me closer and closer to the explosion, the tightness of her throat massaging the tip of my shaft aggressively.

I was getting close, and while I could keep myself back, I decided to reward her enthusiasm. “I’m about to explode, sweetie,” I said. “Blink once if you want me to warn you before, and twice if you don’t.” 

I smirked when she blinked twice, then leaned back and silently enjoyed the treatment she was delivering, occasionally pausing for breath. Since she had asked for it, I didn’t give any warning other than a sudden throbbing in her mouth before I exploded, filling her mouth. Shockingly, she managed to get all of it easily, then gave me a dirty smile before gulping down like she was not a noble scion but a back-alley tramp. Not that I had any problems with that, of course. 

“Amazing reward, honey,” I said as I caressed her cheek while she pulled a gourd of water to clean her face and mouth. 

“No,” she said with a sudden smirk as she closed in the distance once again, already unbuttoning her shirt.