An Archer's Promise Chapter 47: Aid (Patreon)

Not beta read yet.

Super tired, will update chapter 7 of Fake Familiar and 46 of An Archer's Promise with their latest beta read version along with posting chapter 23 Broly and chapter 42 of An Archer's Promise on Ffn.net after waking up — can barely write right now due to lack of sleep.

WARNING: LEMON SCENE AHEAD!
(Added signs to show where it starts and ends if ya want to skip it.)

Also, +7k chapters and likely more afterwards as lemon scene will be improved.

Next chapter To Love a Sword.

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-Dark Lands-

"Why me…"

Ever since he came to this world, Archer felt like his daily life kept getting more and more crowded. Normally, he would spend days, weeks, and even months alone with minimal human contact. Why bother establishing connections with someone that would die by his hands? And it was easier for him to concentrate when all by himself.

In this world, the only time he spent alone was either in the dungeon in Ken and barely a full day inside the forest before a Princess Knight's body washed up near him.

Now, even taking a small bath had him encounter two beautiful elves he remembered from Heilung Bergdorf. Their interaction back then was weird, to say the least, he didn't expect things would turn out the way they did back then. Anna and Grace were not annoying, to be honest, Archer just couldn't understand them. Especially Anna, that woman was hard to figure out.

"Oh, my gods, y-your arm!!!" Grace screamed in fright, after she let go of him, her eyes looking down at his wounded limb. Not even once she cared to hide her nude body from him, or rather than thought wasn't in her mind, to begin with. "H-How did this happen!? Are you okay!?"

Despite freaking out, her hands gently touched his forearm. His face twitched from the burning pain that only lasted a second before disappearing. A green light came from Grace's hand and surrounded his arm.

Healing magic?

"Oh my, that certainly looks quite serious," Anna came closer, her chest touching his as she carefully examined his arm. "It's quite recent as well, I'm astonished how you even suffered from such a thing in the first place. Must have been from a magic attack."

She was surprisingly sharp, her guess accurate for him to nod his head. "Yes, I was on a certain mission when I got ambushed. My defenses held up miraculously but my arm paid the price, so I'm just waiting for it to heal on its own. I was going for a walk when I noticed this place, and decided it was the best option to clean my wounds and relax a little. Didn't expect for the water to hold some medicinal properties." Archer said with his eyes closed, not out of embarrassment but because his vision was obstructed by stands of blonde hair and Anna's face.

"Yes, we set up this bath with various plants and flowers holding beneficial properties for the skin. It does also help with muscle pain and fatigue but that's all. If you get out of here and have the effect dry off then the pain will return tenfold." Grace spoke with a firm tone, her attention completely on his injury as she continued to use her magic.

"Grace, I don't even think he feels much given his nerves have been fried off. I can only see red and white muscles and charred fleshy remains. How you're not screaming in pain is impressive, Archer-san."

He scoffed, "Trust me when I say that the pain is real and even the slightest wind gives me the sensation of having thousands of ants biting my arm. I'm just not screaming because it would be a waste of energy and time. Better to find a healer who can help my case as soon as possible."

His eyes opened to see the blonde elf with her hands caressing his face, though she still showcased little to no emotions, he could tell that she cared. "Lucky for you, both of us are the best healers you'll find in all of Eostia." Anna boasted with a hint of pride in her tone.

"While we may have taken refuge in the village and settled down for a few years, our skills still haven't diminished that much."

"Understandable, given from the rumors Maia said to me, you've been continuing your craft with the local people and passing caravans." Archer said, remembering how before reaching the village Maia mentioned how the Mayor's fiance was a miracle worker according to the people. "Given how both of you set up this pond, I can say that your skills were underestimated."

"You praise us too much, Archer-san."

"Now I'm curious about something, now that you're here, I take it you've left your village and all. But why? What happened between the Mayor and you? And Grace's Inn?" He asked, curious about what happened after he left.

Anna rested her head on his shoulders, a move that made him slightly uncomfortable with how intimate she was getting.

"To be honest, the life of an elf is quite hard when living alongside humans. You are fragile… short-lived creatures who die early and leave us alone — no offense. Grace herself used to have a husband in the past who passed away, which is the sole reason why she remained in the village to look after the Inn. I decided to stay there, to accompany my long-time friend in her life while granting the Mayor his wish of having me as his own. Granted, he changed from the young boy I met once in the past and now mostly saw me as a trophy wife to show off to the people — so there was no love there, to begin with. This made leaving the village that much easier for me."

"As for the Inn," Grace started speaking. "I gave it back to my late husband's mother. She and I never got along due to my nature as a Dark Elf and his death further soured our relationship. I couldn't bring myself to sell it and also felt unworthy of owning it. My best option was to move on with life, I can't remain stuck with the past for another decade. The memories of the past still exist and I'll cherish them dearly, now it's time for me to make new ones. So a few days after you left, Anna and I departed from Heilung with nothing but the clothes on ourselves. Our journey was tough, we encountered many obstacles… especially in Feoh."

"Feoh… how is the kingdom?" Given he was about to pass through that kingdom soon, Archer wanted to gather some information from people he knew and somewhat trusted to an extent.

To his surprise, he saw tears building up in Grace's eyes with Anna comforting the Dark Elf with a head pat.

"It's a tragedy, the most disgusting kingdom I've seen in my life." He was surprised at the venom in Anna's tone."Streets riddled with starving people who numbered in the thousands. Some streets… filled with excrement and cadavers in a few corners. Rats, maggots, basically a vision of hell. It was hard enough to keep our faces hidden when helping whoever we could, but there was just… so much."

"I-It w-was horrible," Grace sobbed, the experience having most likely scarred her. "The local guards barely cared about the population and only moved whenever a noble was present… even the Knights were only stationed in the upper areas. Everything is just a mess. No one has enough money to even buy bread, and the few who can have their food are forcefully taken away by the guards. Anyone trying to resist is killed without warning. The women offer their bodies in exchange for food… in some cases even underage girls *sniff* horrible."

"True, Grace nearly ended up getting killed while trying to save someone if I hadn't held her back time."

Wow, Archer didn't expect the situation to be this bad. Since he stopped by Ken and Geofu, the former having its fair share of problems did not come close to what Grace and Anna described. He was certain Maia would take care of the internal affairs well enough after Hicks was gone. Luu-Luu's kingdom was chaotic in an orderly fashion, people generally minded their own business and work.

"Sounds like a lovely place," he said sarcastically. "Just what is that dumb girl doing?" His first encounter with Alicia already gave him a bad impression of the girl. "And isn't Celestine supposed to do something about this?"

Hotheaded, arrogant, and immature.

"I honestly don't think she even knows what's going on in her own kingdom. As for the Goddess Reborn, there have been rumors that she didn't seem herself lately. Missing many public appearances in Thorne and even passing on ceremonies from the Church. She's currently in Feoh I believe, not too sure about that since we left the place as soon as the guards started eyeing us with… lustful intent. We didn't want to risk it, though Grace wanted to remain behind and continue helping the people."

"But you dragged me out of there." The dark-haired elf whined. "I could have done more if—"

"If not then you would have been captured, dragged into an abandoned alley, and raped by a bunch of guards before either dying or getting sold off when they would uncover your face." Her words were direct and vicious, though Archer could understand that she was doing this for Grace's sake. Kuroinu or not, people like these still existed along with the demons. If he was tasked to eradicate such people then at that point, EMIYA would be set on a path of pure genocide which went against the Counter Force's goals.

"She's right, it would've been foolish to remain there for long periods without protection. You had good intentions, but unfortunately, that is not enough to get rid of such evil in the world. You'll need to accept it, and just do your best to reduce this number without trying to become a hero and save everyone — such a goal is impossible and delusional." Just the thought of having a younger Shirou Emiya in this world gave him a major headache. That boy would cause more chaos just trying to help one kingdom. Without investing a single second to think about the consequences, he would jump straight into the fire and ironically cause more destruction as a result.

"Is everything alright, Archer-sama?" Grace grew worried when she sensed the man next to her grow restless for a split second. His face scrunched as if having an unpleasant thought pass through his mind.

"Yeah, it's nothing." Better to change the topic. "Do you think it's possible to heal my hand to its previous state? The sooner it gets healed the better."

The Dark Elf carefully examined his arm, her fingers which no longer stung him gliding over his muscles. "Hmmm, I believe it is possible. Your muscles are mostly intact, the bones only suffer a moderate amount of fractures. But regrowing your skin will be a—"

"— a strenuous process," Anna spoke over her. "I can sense that you are tired, exhausted, and running on fumes. Well, I have a method that will not only energize you back to full health with all your stamina back to full but also your arm completely healed. It's a matter of an hour which can only happen now with both of us having already prepared the pond with all the necessary ingredients and all that remains is our own magic playing a major role in this process." She grabbed his face and stared at his eyes with a piercing gaze.

"E-Eh Anna, y-y-you don't mean…" Grace's face turned bright neon red as she finally showed her shy personality. Archer was having a bad premonition.

"Yes, we will directly imbue our mana and healing spells inside him."

Wait, wasn't that…

"Trust us, Archer-san. Unlike humans who are born with one element, elves can hold multiple and it just happened that Grace has earth and water. While I hold both wood and metal — but together we can combine our wood and water element inside you, which is beneficial for recovery and will accelerate the healing process. Just trust us, we promise you that you'll be better by the end of this. You won't regret it,"

Feoh wasn't near, in his current condition traversing just long distances with two Dark Elves who wouldn't hesitate to kill him if he let his guard down was idiotic. Olga still held information about the Insect God Cult he needed to learn and the possibility they might encounter obstacles like demons, bandits, or even Knights under Alicia's command remained high. No matter which way he saw it, this terrible idea wouldn't end nicely for him.

That old man did say that he needed to accept the help of those around him.

Too tired to care and wanting nothing more than the end result, Archer looked at Anna's face in front of him, her blue eyes shining brightly with hidden desire — he relented.

"Very well, do what you must."

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(Lemon Start!)








"Thank you," with that said, Anna closed the distance between their faces. Passionately pressing her lips against his, Archer wasn't surprised to feel a wet tongue slithering into his mouth. He didn't even bother resisting as he embraced her tight, Anna's hands roaming over his body underwater. The now warm water lapping against his skin, he felt a gentle sensation of pressure against his crotch — Anna's thighs rubbing up against him. Her naked chest pressed against him while her nipples grew stiff.

"Ah~!" The Dark Elf moaned, loving the sensation instantly. Unlike last time, they didn't go that far, but now... Now she could indulge until her heart's content.

"This is where it begins," she whispered into his ear, her voice seductive and sensual. "Just relax, let us do all the work. You deserve this, so don't be hesitant."

Archer chuckled at her words, "How thoughtful of you," giving in to the feeling of Anna's soft breasts against his torso. A small moan escaped her lips again as she pressed her moist slit against him underwater, the friction making her gasp for air.

"Hnn~!" She kissed him again, more passionately, with far more desire and lust coming from her eyes. Anna's tongue invading his mouth in every corner, their tongues intertwining, wrestling and licking each other — his dick twitched as she continued to rub her pussy against him.

"Yesss~" She moaned loudly, her hips moving back and forth with renewed vigor.

Anna had always been suffering from high sexual desires for as long as she could remember. Having no one but Grace by her side to relieve some of the burdens, but now with him, she wanted to give the man all that he wanted. She wanted to give him pleasure beyond his wildest dreams, she wanted to please him with her body, her talent, and her love.

"A-Ah A-Anna?" Grace who was watching these two making out didn't know what to do, her body felt hot and cold at the same time. She wanted to join them but couldn't muster the courage to get in between them. What kind of future would this bring? How would this affect their friendship?

"Here," Anna grabbed her hand and guided it to his stiff rod, making Grace's heart beat like crazy as she couldn't let it go and started moving.

"Hn!"

The Dark Elf's fingers firmly grasped his member, squeezing it gently. A small moan escaping her lips, his cock throbbing to life as Anna's hands ran up and down his body. His shaft was getting harder and harder with every passing second, Grace stroking his dick with her slippery hands as Anna and Archer made out, the latter separating with a string of saliva connecting them.

"S-So big... y-your d-dick is so big..."

Grace's hands were trembling as she slowly touched his erection, making Archer smile at her innocent reaction. Hard to believe she was a few centuries old and was even married once.

"You're a virgin?" Anna asked, her hands going through his hair, wanting to devour him a third time and not stop.

"No, I've lived a long life as well."

"How unfortunate," Anna replied, letting her hand roam over his shoulders. "But expected."

"Hnn~!" With that said, she kissed him again, their tongues wrestling against each other — her breasts pressing against him. "Mm~! Ahh~!"

Grace didn't stop as well, wanting to keep with the two. He groaned loudly, her hands grabbing his shaft tightly. She loved the way he felt, the Dark Elf wanted to have his hands around her waist while her legs wrapped around his back.

"Oho~" Anna licked the back of her neck, her fingers digging into her flesh while she continued teasing her womanhood with her thumb. "Aah~! Someone is getting excited by just touching, why don't your lips over here?"

Anna dragged Grace over on Archer, making her friend take her place. Grace climbed on top of him, pushing her breasts against his chest while she grinded her hips against his crotch. She was already soaking wet, her juices running down her thighs and pooling at the bottom of the pool.

All of this, happening while Anna went lower where his dick was pressed in between Grace's checks, rubbing her clit against his shaft. Giggling softly, Anna wanted to make him cum before the real fun could begin.

"Nn!" She moaned when Anna grabbed her ass, giving it a squeeze.

"W-What are you doing?" Grace exclaimed, her face turning bright red when Anna took away the dick that she was rubbing against.

"Having a taste." The elf moved closer, her tongue lapping at his shaft before taking his tip between her teeth. "Aah~!"

Archer's body shivered, his mind becoming foggy as he struggled to focus on anything except the feeling of Anna's mouth around his dick. The Light Elf sucked him off eagerly, her tongue swirling around the head of his cock before engulfing it entirely — gagging on the first few inches.

"Aaaaaaaah~! Not fair!" Grace complained, her voice muffled by the water around them. "I want to do it too!"

"It's okay. We can share him," Anna answered, her mind too clouded with his member inside her mouth, her tongue sliding up and down the length of his shaft. She started sucking on the tip of his dick, her saliva dripping down his shaft, making him shiver with delight.

"Hnn!" She moaned, her throat convulsing as she deep-throated him, her tongue massaging his sensitive underside.

"Ah~" Grace moaned as Archer bit one of her nipples and pinched hard.

Anna was enjoying herself immensely, her tongue swirling around his cock like a snake. She loved how his dick tasted, the salty flavor making her want to lick and suck him until he came all over her face. A lustful thought that crossed her mind, making her want to push him back onto the ground so she could mount him right there.

Her hands continued to knead her friend's cheeks as the latter didn't stop indulging on Archer's lips. She spread them apart, using her finger to rub Grace's wet pussy and inserting a finger deep inside her asshole.
"Mmph!" Grace moaned, shuddering as the finger invaded her deepest parts, stretching her insides like she never thought possible.

"Hm!" The blonde elf's eyes widened as she felt his dick twitch, a sign that he was about to cum.

"Mmm~!" Anna sucked his cock harder, her tongue lashing his sensitive underside. "Cum for me, Archer-san!"

"Hnn~" Archer let out a loud moan, his cock throbbing as he climaxed inside Anna's mouth. "Ah~! Aaargh~!"

Anna swallowed his load whole, gulping down his seed as it spilled out of her mouth. The Light Elf lapped up the remaining drops, her tongue circling around his shaft before kissing it.

"Wow..." Grace couldn't believe what she saw, her jaw dropping open as she watched Anna cleaning Archer's dick with her tongue. "M-My turn!"

"Why don't you use your breasts this time? Like this," grabbing her own tits, she enveloped the dick right in between them.

"Mm!" Grace followed her action and sandwiched his shaft in between their chests. "Hnn~!" She gasped for air, squishing her boobs against his dick.

"Mm~!" She gasped, her eyes flickering with desire as she felt his hardness pressing against her chest. Both girls moving at a similar rhythm, their bodies rocking together as they pleasured him at the same time.
Both of them worked their magic, both of them pleasuring him simultaneously — his dick swelling to full size as Anna kept sucking on the tip of his cock, her lips glistening with saliva before letting go with an audible pop. Grace didn't hesitate to take in her mouth, shuddering from pleasure when she felt the tip of Archer's cock enter her mouth.
"Ahh~! Mm~!" She pulled back, sucking on the tip of his cock before plunging back down.

Both women were moaning loudly, their breasts shaking from the force as they milked the dick. Their breasts jiggling and bouncing, making him dizzy from pleasure.

"Are you cumming again, A-Archer-san?"

"Ah, he is!" Grace didn't miss a moment and swallowed his shaft completely.

He didn't answer, his eyes closed as he enjoyed the sensation of being sandwiched between these two. He grew closer to orgasm, his dick twitching and pulsating as it entered her warm mouth. A sharp cry escaped him when he came, Grace's mouth quickly filling up with cum as she gulped down the potent seed.

"Ah, haaa! A-A-Ah~!" The Dark Elf moaned, her fingers playing with her clit as her pussy spasmed.

Grace was lost in the act, her tongue swirling around his cock as she kept milking his shaft, prolonging his pleasure. The Dark Elf looked up at him, her eyes filled with lust as she continued milking his shaft with her mouth.

It wasn't until a few seconds later that she stopped, releasing hold of him and gasping for air.

"Now that the appetizers are done, it's time for the main course." Anna said, taking Grace to the shore and laying the woman down on her back before mounting on top of her before laying down as well. Exposing their rear, Anna called out to him. "So, which one do you choose to do first?"

"Hmm..." Archer mused, looking down between the two women to find himself between their legs. "Uhm, I think I'll start with Grace."

"I'm rather disappointed."

"Too bad," without hesitation, his shaft pressed onto Grace before thrusting.

"Ah~!"

Grace's pussy was tight, clenching around his shaft as he plunged inside her. The Dark Elf gasped, her body quivering as he buried his dick deep inside her, causing her stomach to ripple. Anna gripped her thighs, watching the man fuck her friend.

"Mnn~! Nn-!" Grace moaned, her body undulating as he fucked her from behind.

"Yeah, that's good." Anna smiled, smiling at the sight of him penetrating her friend. "Do you like it, Archer-san?"

"..."

"Don't forget about me." Anna reached out, grasping his dick and guiding it towards her pussy."Do us both, give us everything you got."

Archer did as she suggested, shifting position so he could penetrate the elf from behind. Pushing his cock inside her, she gasped, her chest rising and falling rapidly.

"Mm~!" Anna leaned back against Grace, opening her legs wide to allow him room to move. "Nn!"

Archer pushed into her, fucking her with his cock while Grace continued to play with herself. The Light Elf shuddered, her fingernails digging into the sand as he began to pick up the pace, slamming his cock in and out of her pussy.

He changed again, this time going back inside Grace.

The woman was in heaven, her pussy feeling so full — both of them were impaled on his shaft as it pounded their pussies together. Her entire body quaking, her eyes rolling back as she climaxed, a string of her juices leaking from her pussy and down her ass.

"Nn! A-Ahh! Ah~!" Anna screamed, grinding her hips against both Grace and Archer as she orgasmed. "Ahh~! A-Ah~!"

"Ooh~!" Grace moaned, her body shaking as she came on Archer's dick. While he also came inside her. "A-Ahh~!"

The two women collapsed next to each other, both of them panting heavily as they recovered from their intense orgasm.

"Hnn... that was fun."

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(Lemon end!)







{Break}

"Amazing," Archer watched in wonder as the charred skin separated from his arm before getting replaced by a healthy-looking tanned skin. A sight no different than regeneration similar to what a King of Knights would have experienced with Avalon inside her body.

But he no longer has that particular treasure anymore nor did his past self ever get any fast regeneration abilities whatsoever. Having swords stitch his flesh back into place was more akin to a double-edged sword than a boon.

Yet this… this shocked him.

"You weren't lying," said the man, looking over at Grace and Anna now clothed concentrating on his arm. Both used some healing spell on his arm far more abundant than before, he could feel his body resonate with it and take in as much benefit. In less than an hour, his arm went back to its previous self. Archer clenched his fingers, used reinforcement, and tried out a few swings with a Traced weapon. "I'm impressed."

Everything was perfect.

Grace let out a big breath before collapsing on the ground, Anna looked a bit paler than usual but still maintained her prim and proper posture without a hint of emotion — a far cry from her previous self.

"Of course, I was telling the truth, I find it disheartening that you doubted our abilities." She said, wiping her sweat with a towel and also cleaning off his arm from any leftover dead skin. "Though if I were, to be honest, your body reacted to our energy far better than my initial expectations. I expected some kind of rejection or resistance in the beginning and also the possibility that your human body wouldn't be able to handle the combination of our manas — yet it turned out perfectly."

He frowned, "I would have liked to know that previously."

"It isn't anything major or deadly, at most we would have needed to repeat the transfer a couple of times a day for a week. Unfortunately, it worked on the first try."

Archer's eyes twitched, that kind of thing would have killed him regardless if he had Alaya's support or not. "... Are you related to Maia perchance?"

"I fail to see what being related to one of the Princess Knights has to do with anything. But to answer your questions, no."

"Because both of you are insatiable and actually make me fear for my life." He said, looking over a cliff in the distance, having sensed something odd over there. But upon further observation, there was nothing in that area.

Anna grew interested.

"Hoooo, so you slept with a Princess Knight, after all, Maia on top of that. I knew something was going on between you two back then at the village. Congratulations." He ended up chuckling at her action, this woman was quite eccentric with her hard-to-predict behavior.

"Is she going to be okay?" Wanting to change subjects, Archer pointed at Grace who seemed like she was about to pass out at any moment.

"P-Please, don't worry about me," the Dark Elf answered. "I just ended up giving too much, my reserves are dry. But as long as you're okay, then it's a small inconvenience for me."

They had indeed gained a large part of his trust, having done him an immense service that he feared would have left him temporarily crippled in a deadly world with the Beast shard still somewhere out there. Archer grew very thankful towards these two.

"So… where are you two headed now?" Unfortunately, at the end of the day they had to continue on their separate ways. Archer was previously worried that he wouldn't be able to properly contain Olga and Chloe if they truly tried to run away from him — now he no longer needed to worry about it.

"We're not sure," Anna admitted. "We've wandered the lands, gathering experience and karma from helping others. We can't really return to Heilung given the Mayor will probably harbor malicious intent against me and Grace for leaving so suddenly."

"I see," An idea passed through his mind, "Do you have a piece of paper?"

"Eh, sure… what for?"

She handed him a small white page from a book inside her bag, "Give me a second, I'll tell you." Now that he hadn't returned to the Counter Force's domain like he expected to, Archer decided that it was a good moment to write the letter he promised to a certain redhead.

A few minutes later, he handed the folded letter to Anna who took it with confusion written all over her face.

"If you have nowhere to go now, I know a place. It's quite beautiful with good people that will not cause you any problems — Grünes Bergdorf. It's near Ken, a small village that will welcome you both with open arms if I say so. There you'll find an Inn called Emerald Inn, a girl you can consider my unofficial sous-chef is managing the place since it belongs to her. I want you to give this to her and possibly check the place out. If it's to your liking, then why not settle there?"

Ever since Geofu, he always wondered how Alice was doing. Given Bianca joined her to help out then surely things would run more smoothly for the girl. He wanted to tell her that he was fine, to continue working hard, and so on. Archer wrote a few of his adventures while keeping out the dark parts. Inside the letter, he also added a few recipes he discovered from the local ingredients he found in the forest, including the fish which gave him ideas.

"And given we're still in the Dark Lands with wandering Demons in every corner, it's better I accompany you until we've passed through Feoh's border. You can take the road to Ken from there." Normally, Archer wouldn't have proposed such a thing given he had the literal Dark Queen and her second in command as his prisoners, but with his now healed self he was confident that he could handle Chloe or Olga if they tried something unusual. Not to mention this was only a matter of barely a day, Feoh wasn't that far and he wouldn't worry about their safety.

"Thank you… I don't know what else to say." Anna felt touched by the gesture. "It's true that the Dark Queen has her troops stationed around in many places. The last thing we want is to get captured by her or her minions. Grace will be safe but the fate that'll await me is worse than hell. Not to mention I heard rumors about the Kuroinu mercenary group stationed somewhere close. I've also been told about many vile stories around them so encountering them is also not ideal."

"..."

Oh right, they couldn't have known what happened to either of those groups so soon.

"It's nothing, I feel indebted to you for healing my arm." He decided to leave that matter until they returned to his spot. Nevertheless, any hidden dangers were another big reason why he wanted to ensure their safety for now.

"A sous-chef? You can cook?" Grace got back up, regaining her previous vigor and looking at him with star-stricken eyes.

"I believe I told you this already, Grace." Anna muttered quietly.

"Hahaha, yes, I can cook." Archer found her excitement cute and funny. "But I wouldn't call myself a professional or an expert by any means."

"Oh! I have some recipes we can try with some mushrooms I've foraged!"

They lively chatted, Grace bouncing around like a young kid while Anna started to pack up their belongings to follow Archer back to his camp.

{Break}

Olga had a nightmare.

Standing in the middle of her throne room with nothing but the clothes she wore on herself. Glaring at Vault who has taken her golden throne for himself, commanding his vile men to seize her before making a show of her body. Using her to please them while he watched with a feral smirk, defiling every inch of her body. Breaking through protection she added to herself and forcefully took her virginity. The next few hours, having her body get raped by these vermins while she could do nothing and slowly experience her mind die bit by bit till she…

Till she started enjoying herself.

Becoming nothing more than a brain-dead doll who sought for carnal pleasure.

"Aaahh!!"

Olga's eyes snapped open with terror. She tried to move but found herself incapable, an event that nearly caused her to experience a mental breakdown as she almost believed that the nightmare truly happened. But as her vision got clearer, those fears slowly died down.

"Forest?"

Yes, she wasn't in her Castle… it was destroyed after all. She was taken as a prisoner by a man who served a god she knew nothing about. Forced to suffer humiliation by sleeping on the ground through the cold night.

She thanked the gods that it was nothing but a nightmare.

"Why can't I move?" Her limbs felt like they were held down by some sort of invisible chain. "A sword?" Her eyes lifted up to see a single blade struck to the ground, having no special feature and being generally very mundane. But the centuries worth of experience and her natural affinity to magic in particular made the woman realize that this blade wasn't so simple.

Holding magical properties, she could sense it.

But then she noticed another major change in the camp, Archer was gone. "He left us?" Left here as bait to be found, raped, and eaten by wandering demons. Did he truly abandon them!? "No, that can't be it. I haven't told him anything about the Insect God Cult and he promised to guide us back to Celestine."

Now that her mind started to regain its clarity, Olga analyzed the situation and concluded that the man couldn't have abandoned them. Going through all that trouble to save them for nothing? Humans were foolish creatures lacking a lot in terms of wisdom and knowledge — but not to this level.

"I'll just have to find him and confront the man for his carelessness!" How could he leave a Queen like herself to sleep in the middle of the night without any protection against the cold!? Not to mention going against his promise and not ensuring their safety and deciding to wander off like a fool!

Despite all of that, she still remained immobile.

Her scrutiny went to the sword, this thing was responsible for it, and her intuition said so. And why would Archer randomly leave a sword on the ground near them? But it could easily be a distraction for her to focus on while the real spell continued to hold her body. In the end, Olga had no way of getting an accurate answer about how the magic restraining her worked or where it came from.

"It's getting sunny," she noted when seeing the clouds in the sky start to drift away. There were scarce amounts of clouds, to begin with, so if they remained like this with the sun's rays beating down upon her skin for another hour then Olga swore that she would k— "Ah!"

Steaming in anger, she failed to notice that the light from the sun moved and completely broke her connection to the Black Key, making the Dark Queen panic slightly and nearly unceremoniously fall to the ground.

"I'm free?"

Had the effects worn off?

"Humph, as expected from a human, incompetent with magic no matter who their patron deity is. Now to find him and demand an apology from him…" she got up, dusting off some of the sand and dirt which further soured her mood. A high being like her dirtied to such an extent that even Celestine couldn't manage to accomplish anything against her.

Looking around, Olga used a few magic spells to set up a small barrier around the sleeping Chloe that would protect her from any danger and dissipate after she would wake up. Even if she no longer held the same amount of power without her artifacts and the Golden Throne, Olga still remained a prodigy among elves when it came to magic. Like Celestine, holding affinity with all give elements from birth despite not being part of a goddess.

"Let's see where he wandered off to." The took the first path that led to another section of the dead forest, no matter how far she searched with her eyes, Archer was nowhere to be seen. Enough time went by for the sky to darken once again with clouds obscuring the sun. If he truly left them then it wouldn't be a major problem, not the first time she experienced human's tendency to betray anyone and everyone. Just trying to reach Celestine without her Princess Knights catching her first would be tricky and time-consuming. Or she could retreat somewhere far away and gather her forces there, but that as well came with its own pros and cons.

In the end, she reached a cliff where she grew tired and decided to go back and wake up Chloe.

Though as she was about to leave, her ears twitched as she heard…

"Moaning?"

Did she hear wrong? It could have been the wind.

But the sound came back, louder and sounding slightly different from the previous one. Olga peeked over the edge and was shocked to find a scene that shook her heart.

"That's Archer with… two other elves? A Dark Elf!?" In the middle of an intimate play that made Olga's cheeks blush furiously. Just what happened when she was asleep!?

Such degeneracy, so disgusting that it made her hatred of this man grow exponentially. Were those his slaves he brought with him? She couldn't see any seals or tattoos so it wasn't certain and the fact they looked quite happy wasn't lost on her.

"A traitor to her own people!" It was more accurate to say her anger was directed toward the Dark Elf in particular. To not only make such expressions to a Light Elf but a human as well… had she no pride or shame? The same people that persecuted them for centuries, turned her own into sex slaves and mere playthings.

Olga remained there for a few more minutes until she decided that she could no longer take it and return to the camp.

Rustle!

"—!"

Something was approachin—

"Ah, Olga-sama! Thank the gods you're safe! I finally found you! Look at this weapon that the stupid human left behind, I discovered it to hold some immense power to hold down enemies by some mysterious means and brought it with me. We can use it to take him down for goo — kya!" The joyful Chloe failed to see a branch on the ground and had her foot get stuck on it, making the girl lose her balance and fall to the ground with a faceplant.

Schrk!

While the sword flew in the air before piercing both hers and Olga's shadow, freezing them in place once again. But now, Olga was still partially facing the scene down the hill, unable to move, she was forced to watch the scene in its entirety.

"..."

{Break}

-Ansur-

Claudia once again rode non-stop through a long tiresome journey back to her Kingdom. Her sleep-deprived troops barely kept up with her, some battling their inner demons just to stay awake and not fall off their saddles.

Fortunately, she only brought back half of her Knights and let the others rest and rejoin her group later.

The reason Claudia was in such a hurry stemmed from the conversation Klaus promised to have with her father-in-law. Grace Levantine was a hard man to please with his traditional ways of thinking and having him accept an adopted grandson would be hard — but Claudia trusted her husband to be capable enough.

He lacked nothing when it came to knowledge and potential in her opinion. He had a way with words that swayed her many times in the past, a skill he learned from his father most likely.

If he said yes, then half of her stress would vanish in an instant. Furthermore, the woman's dream of starting a family would finally come true!

As she approached the gates, a strange sight met her. Rather she found someone familiar waiting for her.

"Father?" That was how he preferred she would call him instead of father-in-law. Grace was surrounded by a ground of his soldiers all surrounding the outer walls and passing him reports. "Is something wrong?"

Claudia held herself from announcing the death of the Kuroinu given the weird situation.

She got off her horse, ignoring how her chest bounced due to the armor being unable to keep them still.

"Ah, Claudia, glad you came back so soon. The journey must have been hard on you." He spoke gently, taking her hand and planting a kiss on the back of her hand. An action that momentarily stunned Claudia given this was only the second he had done that the entire time they knew each other.

Shaking her head, the brunette guessed that something was wrong from the number of soldiers and Knights moving around frantically. Coupled with Grave's sunken eyes and tired tone, a bad feeling started to creep inside her heart.

"The journey was manageable, what is going on here? Did Klaus talk to you recently?" She asked.

Grave sighed, "Klaus? I'm afraid he never came to visit me once after you left, which is why you see this scene in front of you."

Her blood turned cold as the color of her face turned pale.

"W-What do you mean?"

"I'm afraid to say this, Claudia, but Klaus has gone missing. And most worryingly, we have reason to suspect that he was kidnapped by one of the underground gangs in the area. So we're trying to hunt them down as soon as possible and save my son. Thankfully, we managed to narrow down their base to this building in particular." One of his shoulders showed a map to the Princess Knight.

At that moment, Claudia's vision turned crimson as all her previous fatigue vanished as she burst through the gates with his blade drawn. The Knights that accompanied her followed along with renewed vigor.

Grave who stood in the back couldn't help but smirk, eyeing her round backside that made him feel eager to one day get a hold of them. A smirk on his face as he gestured for his men to follow him.

"I'm sorry to say this, but that bastard has almost lost his mind by now. Even if he didn't, there is no way you'll believe him as every healer in this kingdom works for me. I'll make love to you right in front of your past husband, my future wife."

Now the show could start, he was going to have fun seeing the despair in Klaus's eyes.

A lion like him always liked to play with their prey first before going for the kill.