Chapter 36: That's Fine Too

Some time earlier.

Fuck. Three people are at camp, one’s on top of Liara, and two are circling around her.

I kick off the ground, then off a magic foothold in the air to close in on the camp; in moments, I’m just above it.

“You fucking bitch!” a man yells, “I was going to be gentle with you, but you’ll wish you were dead by sunrise!”

Why are fantasy worlds so rapey? You know what – I’m glad this world doesn’t have cat girls, this place doesn’t deserve them.

Liara’s arm is pinned by one of the knights who circled around. She must’ve kicked off the one who’s yelling. I drop my light refraction and descend. I kick the knight that's trapping her arm and crush his ribcage into his heart.

THUNK

“AHHHHHhhh..”

He flies past the tree line, and my gaze falls to the next knight. I manipulate condensed magic around Liara so the wind I generate won’t hit her, then launch myself. I’m behind the knight far before he can react. I grab the back of his neck and throw him past the tree line at his friend, snapping his neck just before I release my throw.

“COMMANDerrr..”

I kneel next to Liara as she grabs at her sword.

“Liara, are you alright?” I ask and look her over, “your arm..” I notice she’s clutching the arm that one of the knights had pinned down.

Liara has extra muscles where her brain should be, but despite that, she’s been very sweet to me. She wants my time and food, just like Sara back home.

Badum

My heart leaps out of my chest as I overlap the two. I close my eyes and see what I want in my mind, spears shooting out of the ground and impaling the remaining knight’s arms and legs. Cutting pieces off of him and regrowing them with magic before cutting them off again and again-

“Alfred.. when did you get back?” Liara asks. She looks up at me and claws me back to reality.

“Hah, so the bitch has a boyfriend, it was smart not to tell us. He got the jump on my men, but that won’t happen with me,” the remaining knight says while rising to his feet and drawing a sword.

This guy really wants to die, but it’d be better if Liara did it, winning this fight could mean she avoids feeling traumatized.

“Liara, I can kill him. Or I can hurt him, and you can kill him,” I say with my eyes locked on the knight, “tell me what you want.”

“I-I..” Liara stutters, “hurt him.”

I put a barrier in front of Liara and kick off of it. I pull my sword from storage and bury the hilt in the knight’s face, then drop the blade down to separate his sword hand from his body.

“YAOWWW,” he screams.

I spin behind him and smack the flat of my sword into the armor on his back and behind his arms. He flies toward Liara, but slams into the barrier in front of her. I follow his movement and shrink the barrier, then grab the back of his neck and slam him face-first into the ground next to Liara.

“HURK.. thud”

The broken knight lies next to Liara.

“Wha-“ Liara mumbles.

I’ve never let anyone else use my sword, but it’s good at cutting through assholes. I hold it out in front of Liara, who’s staring at the wounded creature next to her.

“Take it,” I tell her, “he’ll bleed out in a few minutes if we don’t treat the hand, or you kill him,” I add with a shrug.

“hargh.. please don’t.. have mercy please..” the knight moans towards Liara.

Mercy? How much mercy would you have shown if we didn’t have you by the balls?

“The choice is yours, Liara. I’m against keeping him alive, but I’ll do whatever you want,” I say with a cold expression.

Liara takes the sword and examines it for a moment before plunging it into the knight’s back. She doesn’t run him through, instead holding it just halfway through his torso.

“AAHHHG!” the knight screams.

He probably deserves that, but damn Liara. She’s muttering under her breath too, probably calling him bad names. I’ll let her enjoy the moment..

She stares between the man writhing in agony and the sword she’s impaling him with until he sputters-

“harguhhh..” the moans trail off, and the knight falls limp.

Liara inhales like she’s pulling new life from the man’s final breath and pulls my sword from his back. That guy’s insides must’ve been gross, my poor sword needs a bath.

I hold my hand out to Liara to take the sword.

“It’s a family heirloom,” I say, with a bullshit serious face.

She hands me the sword, and I use water magic and a cloth to clean it thoroughly. Good as new.

I look up and see Liara frozen in place over the dead knight.

“Sit by the fire,” I tell her, “the adrenaline will wear off, and you’ll start shaking,” I add before motioning to the campfire.

Liara follows my directions while still muttering under her breath – is she still cursing that guy? Note to self: don’t piss her off.

I drag the body off and dump him with his friends. I throw my sword into storage, then finish what I originally left for, building our tent for the night. I place branches up to the angled tree we’re making camp under to create the frame, then cover it in animal hides to keep it warm.

Hmm, anything else before we eat and sleep?

I scan the camp and see Liara staring at me from the fire, balls the fire, we need more wood. And I need to check Liara’s arm.

“Liara, I’m going to get more firewood, then I’ll look at your arm. I won’t go far,” I say with a gentle smile, hoping her killer instinct is receding along with her stress hormones.

“Yea that’s fine, thanks, Alfred..” she replies quietly.

I walk in a wave pattern away from the camp, keeping myself in earshot and well within magical detection range while I gather a bushel of dry wood. I return a few minutes later with enough to last the night.

Liara hasn’t moved, and her eyes are plastered to me, but she seems less intense. I sit next to her and throw some sticks onto the fire.

“Liara, can I see your right arm?” I ask while motioning to the arm she’s clutching to her chest.

“Oh, right.. it’s a little numb,” she says before stretching it out before me with a wince.

I gently roll up her sleeve and place my hand under her forearm. It’s already half purple. I mix my magic with the energy around her arm and let it pour in while keeping a connection to myself.

When I was experimenting on a bandit last year, I learned that using healing magic like this gives me a three-dimensional view of body composition. Liara’s forearm is pretty simple compared to that guy’s brain, so I have a good idea of the injury.

One of the bones is broken, but it’s not out of place. Would she notice if I healed it?

It’s her sword arm, so healing can’t wait. I could rush her back to a doctor, but it’s pretty dark, and I’d rather fly if she’s hurt. Kinda defeats the point of hiding my healing magic if I show her I can fly..

I went full chimp in front of her, though, and she doesn’t seem afraid of me. The only person I’ve considered explaining I’m a freak to is Jen. I wonder what Liara would think?

‘What!? You can fly?”

‘You can move that fast with magic!??’

‘Alfred, you have to teach me! Teach me now!!’

Probably something like that, and I don’t think I could teach her if I tried. Seeing magic clearly was a pretty important part of how I learned.

I turn my head up to Liara and meet her eyes - they’re oddly calm.

“I don’t think it’s broken, Liara, but you should sleep with a splint on your arm tonight," I say.

“A splint?” she asks with a cocked head and I nod.

“I’m going to wrap your forearm in cloth, then place straight wooden sticks along it before tying them to your arm. It will stop you from moving a bone out of position if one is broken,” I explain.

“Right..” she says while looking at her arm, “it’s my sword arm, we shouldn’t take any chances,” she adds with a gentle smile.

I grab some cloth from storage while acting like I’m pulling from my bag and start to wrap her forearm.

“Tell me if it hurts, I’ll try to be gentle,” I say.

As I slowly wrap the cloth, I weave my magic into the air’s energy and push it into her arm. I start by mending the break and the swelling close to her bones-

“EEP,” Liara yells with a flinch.

“Sorry, Liara, it must be sensitive.. I’ll try to be more gentle,” I say.

I didn’t notice any pain when I regrew my pinky as a kid, but maybe healing a broken bone hurts. I’ve got alcohol in storage, but she might get the wrong idea if I pull it from my pack.

“It’s fine,” Liara says quickly, “I was being a baby, it doesn’t hurt that bad,” she adds with a forced smile.

“We can head back tomorrow if it’s bothering you. If it’s really bad, I could carry you back tonight, but it might hurt to bounce around while being carried..” I explain with a pained smile.

“No way!” she yells with a flushed face, “I finally understand how you became so much stronger than us. I can’t catch up if I run away,” she says with a huff of determination.

If she’s finishing the trip, she needs her arm to work. I’ll have to heal it all the way instead of just the bones.

I push more healing magic and focus on her muscles and connective tissue. I wrap the cloth slowly and see part of the purple fading from her skin before I stop. All that’s left under the bandage is a light boot-shaped bruise. I add the wood pieces and attach them with cloth to sell the splint.

“There, it should feel a little better, and you won’t hurt it in your sleep,” I explain and let go of Liara’s arm.

“Thanks, Alfred. For the splint and not letting those guys hurt me..” she responds with half a smile.

“Sorry, I wasn’t back sooner Liara..” I reply, I hope this didn’t give her a taste for stabbing people. She’s not strong enough to do it without getting hurt.

“I’d be worse than dead if you didn’t come back when you did, so don’t apologize..” she says, “that said, if you feel bad.. could you get some food out?” she continues and brings out her puppy dog eyes.

Yeaaa, she’s fine. Little shit.

“Aha, yea I will. I got a rabbit earlier and brought plenty of vegetables and potatoes. How does a little stew sound?” I ask.

“Ooh, yes please!” Liara says with a bounce.

I prep the stew and hang it from a makeshift wooden tripod over the fire before sitting back down.

“Hey Alfred..” Liara says while staring at the stew pot.

“It’ll just be a little bit until it’s done, I have jerky if you’re that hungry..” I reply.

“Not that, I wanted to ask about that sword – you said it was something from your family,” she says and turns to face me.

This is the sort of question that can lead to a lot of questions. I need to come up with an exceptionally bullshit answer.

“We’re not really sure how long it’s been in the family, supposedly it was even used in the holy war..” I say.

Our mythology–ahem–history course says that before the holy war, people used to wield incredible magic compared to today, and they had magic swords. But everyone who was that strong died, and the swords were lost in the war or lost their magic power. Which is why I call it a mythology class.

“Woah you have a relic like that..” Liara says with wide eyes, “It looked like you didn’t come back with it after you removed the knight..”

“That’s a secret of the sword, I can’t give you details, but it can be stored discreetly..” I answer her subtext.

“Wha- you really can’t show me?” she whines with her puppy dog eyes.

“It’s a family secret..” I explain, “You’re probably the first person who isn’t a Pruss to ever wield that sword.”

“Wow, I got to wield a secret sword.. it was really sharp, that knight’s armor was like butter under its blade,” Liara mutters and stares down at the hand that held it.

“You did, but you’ll need to keep that secret. Especially from the Princess, she’ll never leave me alone if she thinks I have a magic sword, I’d probably have to fake my death,” I say with a chuckle.

“Aha yea she’d be all over you.." Liara mutters, then looks at me seriously, "Do you not like her very much?” she asks.

“I’d like her more if she weren’t the Princess.. Royalty, nobility, politics – I’d rather stay away from it all. When I talk to the Princess, it doesn’t feel like a conversation with a classmate, and if I say the wrong thing, she’s ready to interrogate me on it,” I explain.

“She can be intense, but she spends a lot of time with kids from lower houses. No offense, but as a count’s son, you get a lot more time with her than you should. And she’s really pretty..” Liara gushes. Maybe she has a crush?

“I think that’s because we became close with Eric. My father tells me the Duren family prides itself on connections, and he’s been friends with the Princess since childhood,” I say.

“Maybe.. or she’s a nice girl who likes you,” Liara says with a smirk.

“If she likes me, I’m definitely faking my death, don’t rat me out if the knights find a severed hand with my things by the east wall,” I reply.

“Aha, good on,e” Liara says with a laugh before leaning back and relaxing her posture, “you can be kinda dark, Alfred, the way you looked at that knight earlier, I thought you were going to cut him into little pieces without saying a word.”

“I was thinking about doing something way worse to him. But I thought you’d feel better if you were the one to kill him,” I reply with a shrug.

“Ah yea, that’s dark.. maybe we don’t need to cuddle for warmth tonight..” Liara says before leaning into the fire’s warmth.

“It’s not that cold tonight, so it should be fine,” I say seriously.

“That was um.. a joke.. I’m shivering right in front of the fire, so I will be curled up under your blanket.. please,” Liara says just as seriously.

“That’s fine too. I’ll build a smaller fire in front of the tent, and before we sleep, I can spread the coals from this one under a layer of dirt where we'll sleep,” I explain.

“That’s fine too..” Liara mutters as she pokes a stick into the fire.

“Right, the stew is probably ready, that’ll also warm us up,” I say with an awkward smile.

Once our bellies are full, I start a smaller fire near our tent and dig up the dirt I settled earlier. I bury the coals of the first fire before placing a hide over the ground, and our blankets over it to warm up.

“Liara, are you tired enough to sleep?” I ask, “It’s been dark for a while, and we’ll wake up as soon as the sun comes over the mountain.”

“Yes! I could sleep, I bet it’s warm with all the prep you’ve done,” she says excitedly.

We make our way into the tent, and I move the warmed blankets to the side. Liara immediately buries her face in them-

“Oh wow, they’re warm.. you know what you’re doing, Alfred..” she says with a blanket muffled voice.

“It should be warm enough to fall asleep, but it’ll get colder as the night goes on, so don’t leave much skin exposed to the air,” I explain.

The tent area is big enough to sleep three people, and it really is warm. I roll a spare blanket up for Liara and me to use as a pillow, then place it down near the end of the tent. I flop down and pull the blankets Liara isn’t burying her face in over me.

“Ahhh, this really isn’t bad,” I mutter and close my eyes.

Liara flops next to me and throws her blankets over us as well. It’s warm and roomy, so I doubt she’ll be too cling-

Something with the strength of a small gorilla wraps its arm around me, then tucks its head between my neck and shoulder. It’s strong like a gorilla, but has latched onto me like a sloth clinging to a tree. And it has abs?

I open my eyes and look down to see Liara tangled around me like a vine. She always looks muscular, but god damn, she’s ripped. How did she lose the fight earlier with this much muscle? Does she just need to work on her magic? Or maybe the hike exhausted her..

“Liara, do you work out.. like a lot?” I ask.

“Huh? Yea I train every morning and every night. Why?” she asks, tilting her chin up to look at me.

“Sorry, I felt your abs through both of our clothes and was surprised.. good work..” I mutter.

“You’re one to talk, Tim was right, it feels like you’re made of metal,” Liara says as she starts poking me in the chest and stomach, “if I could hit you with a sword, I think I’d just hurt the sword.”

“Aha, that’s just from all the hunting..” I mumble awkwardly.

“I get it now..” she says quietly before wrapping around me a little further, “it’s not like training in Sante, if we’re weak out here, we’ll die.”

“No one will be dying, you might feel like you’re dying, but I won’t let it actually happen,” I reply with a smirk, “if you think the last mountain was bad, wait until we cross the next one.”

“Ahh, right.. then I need some sleep, goodnight Alfred, thank you for everything,” she says before relaxing her neck and tucking her head fully into me.

I weave a bit more of my magic into the energy in the air and push it into her. I heal the muscles and connective tissue of her legs before giving her arm another round of healing. Satisfied with my work, I close my eyes.