Chapter 361 - False Inquiry.
Bright and early the next day, Hal and Melinda were out of the Harem space and inside her room proper. They allowed themselves a cuddle with time running normally before Hal took his leave without any intentions of informing the Dane powerhouses of his departure.
"I feel dirty" Melinda said suddenly when he was about to walk out her door.
Hal looked back at her with one brow raised on his handsome face,
"What?"
Melinda shrugged,
"Well, I feel like an escort. You came to visit me, had your way with me, and now are departing at the crack of dawn" she said and put her hands beneath her breasts to actually heft them up and emphasize their already ample volume.
Hal did not hide his lecherous gaze at them,
"You are just chuck full of surprises, aren't you?" He asked.
"What? I didn't say I dislike feeling like this. Just saying I feel dirty... That's all."
Hal shook his head with a smile, went out the door, closed it behind him, and then made his way towards the closest teleportation circle to Melinda's residence.
Once on it, he slotted in blue gems and had it take him out of the territory where he boarded a carriage that took him to the residence he had been provided by the Alchemist organization.
He had to admit, upon seeing it again, that more work had been put into making it as homely and welcoming as it could be and with a quick scan with his Astral perception, he could tell Sasha was no longer in the vicinity.
However, he was of the mind that she would be back eventually.
Even before he was inside the mansion completely, Karmen was already coming over to greet him.
Arya was not with her but Hal did not need any actual report on the matter as he knew she had now completely readopted her persona as Alchemist Nadia and was at the Alchemist Organization by virtue of invitation as an Alchemist of renown.
Once inside the mansion proper, He had reaffirmed his decision to leave for Doxon as soon as he could while he put himself into strict cultivation seclusion and used to the whole time trying to comprehend his Dao which considering the possibility of it taking very long seemed the priority at the moment.
Plus, his cultivation had stagnated and the only progress he could truly see himself making was with his bloodline or more accurately, the Shadow demon Bloodline he was now privy to.
So for the next three Days, Hal was inside the Harem space, inside which the Three days were actually Thirty, attempting to comprehend his Dao.
When he was not comprehending what made him who he was and what his whole existence could be summed up, as he was either bedding his ladies or getting more familiar with the Shadow Demon Bloodline and how to use it subtly and stealthily.
He found that the Shadow demon bloodline was even easier to use stealthily than the other two (Lust Demon and Blood Fiend).
When his seclusion was complete and he went out of the Harem space, he found that he was not any closer to the comprehension of his Dao.
It was hard not to feel a tad bit disappointed but he quickly shrugged it off and focused on the positives which were him getting better with his Bloodline.
Karmen remained in the Harem space, even as Hal went out of it since she would be going with him to the Doxon Duchy.
He put the Golden carriage into his inventory and resorted to boarding a commercial carriage to the best Teleportation circle in the entirety of the Silva Duchy... Well, it was actually the second-best.
The actual best was reserved for delegations that arrived to visit the Duke as well as those closest to him and of actual importance. This included those bringing heralds from Imperial power and the three other main powers in the Duchy. (The Danes, Astral palace, and the Fiery Lotus sect).
This second-best Teleportation circle was also a tad bit reserved but Hal felt that being a young Rank Four Alchemist with the money required for transportation, he should be allowed to make use of it.
When he alighted the carriage he was in, he sensed the presence of someone watching. He followed his instincts as well as his senses and nearly jumped out of his skin to as the person was already only a few inches behind him,
"Ha, what the...?" He said and leaped away to then stare at the beautiful Elsa who just watched his reactions without batting an eye while smiling lightly at him.
"How long have you been watching... No, stalking me? I thought you were going to give me space" He asked doing a good job at keeping himself contained and calm.
They were in quite the public location and her scanty dressing and overall sexy appeal turned more than few heads. Some cursed Hal's luck. Others tried and failed to remember when they had seen a more good-looking pair than this.
Elsa shook her head,
"I wasn't stalking you and I really did give you space." Sue told him.
"Really?" Hal asked with skepticism clear in his tone."Why don't I believe you?"
Elsa shrugged,
"I'm telling you the truth. You're just very easy to find. You have this distinct and sweet scent and air about you that acts as a beacon."
Hal smirked,
"All the way from Black lagoon?"
"It's a strong scent"
Hal sighed and turned away from her to walk towards the Teleportation circle building but she was walking by his side in half a second,
"So... Where are you going?" She asked.
"Doxon" Hal said as he saw no point in hiding it since he was fairly certain she could find out on her own if she really wanted to.
"Ah, Doxon. Great place to visit" she said wistfully.
Hal rolled his eyes,
"You came from there so it should be easier to 'Find' me" he said.
"Oh, I'm not going to Doxon. At least not yet. I absolutely love it but I am in no hurry to return to somewhere I will eventually and inevitably go back to.
No, I prefer to stay and enjoy my time away from home."
Hal stopped right at the doorway of the building, where the men present were staring at her as they were in awe of her beauty, to look at her and make his skepticism clear,
"Weren't you employed?" He asked.
"I was. However, my employment grants me a certain... level of freedom with which I can make decisions that best suit my... Situation"
Once she had said that Elsa turned around,
"Anyway, Have a safe trip. And when you come back, you should pay me back for my... Favor from the last time we met"
Hal reached out and grab her hand,
"Wait. You took the time to actually show yourself to me when I am sure you can watch me leave without making it known so you must have something to say."
Elsa narrowed her eyes slightly and was quiet for a while before,
"You visited the Dane Territory"
It was not a question but a statement of fact.
Hal nodded,
"Yes I did"
"Why?" She asked.
"To visit my Fiancee" he said without missing a beat.
Elsa's eyes narrowed even further but she said nothing.
"Is there a problem?" He asked.
"She shook her head and her expression became normal again,
"No. I was just curious"
Hal smirked,
"You do realize that this proves you're stalking me right?"
She smiled,
"Not stalking. I'm 'keeping tabs' on you" she said before walking away.
Hal frowned as he watched her leave and was sure that asking why he was visiting the Dane territory was not really what she wished to inquire about. In fact, as he was not exactly hiding his philandering, she must have already have guessed it was to visit a woman.
The only part he could see genuinely surprised her was that he claimed Melinda was his fiancee.
He frowned for about half a second before sighing and turning around and walking into the building towards the Teleportation circle and the Runemaster in charge of it for the start of his journey.
Chapter 362 - Intrusive Visitor.
Immediately Hal was inside the building, eyes turned to him because quite frankly, he was a definite new face.
Since this particular circle was still subject to a certain amount of reservation, there was not that long a list of those who made use of it.
It was not that Hal's young look did not fit the bill because even though he was a tad bit younger than should be expected, in a world where age could not exactly be determined by looks, he could as well have been well past the Five hundred year mark.
However, whatever they thought of Hal's visage as well as that face that did not seem possible by virtue of how good it looked, they retained a fairly professional attitude... Which is a nice way of saying that they were snobby.
"Who are you?" Asked one of them in a cool voice that shows he had little to no opinion of this blue-eyed young man.
Hal smiled lightly,
"My name is Hal" he said.
"So what?" Asked another of the three present.
He seemed to be of the thought that Hal was stating his name to highlight some Importance as well as status, but since the name had no meaning whatsoever to the trio, they merely frowned.
Hal sighed silently before he said
"I'm here to make use of the Teleportation circle. I've got a long journey planned" he said in an effort to show that he really was not interested in being invested in what was turning out to be an interrogation.
The trio looked at each other and even though it was unnecessary to even check if there was someone else who wished to make use of the Circle apart from Hal, they still looked around to 'ascertain' and then,
"Oh yeah? Let me ask, do you see your sort of people here?" Asked one of them.
Hal chuckled to himself,
"Well, that's a little hard since this place is so empty" he said. Making a point to point out the obvious.
However, he was in no way prepared for their change in visage as they glared at him and stood up as one,
"What is that supposed to mean? That we have a problem with our vision?" Asked the one in the middle.
Hal had been ready to simply withdraw his Rank token and put an end to the annoyance but paused when he saw they were getting riled up. So he instead crossed his arms and stared them down,
"And what are your statements supposed to mean? 'My sort of people'" he asked with mild annoyance.
'You really seem to have a problem with attendant Runemasters don't you?' Grimoire could not help but comment.
Hal mind shrugged,
'It's not my fault they are always snobby assholes is it?' He retorted just as the three frowned,
"Our statements meant exactly what we said. We do not admit people of YOUR status and are tired of people like you coming in here and hoping something falls between the cracks of our imperfect security and reservation systems." Said the one on the right as the three took their seat once again without their visage changing.
Hal could now see that this was a simple case of transferred aggression with them being angry at whosoever had upset them. Especially for people of their profession whose only area of authority resided in a single building.
An authority that was to be used liberally of course and definitely not against those who could take it away.
However, while all that was well and dandy, he still felt it was absolutely no excuse for the way they were acting towards him in particular.
He retrieved his Rank token and presented it to them in a way that they could observe it with both their vision as well Astral sense to ascertain its authenticity,
"How about now?" He asked with a smirk that he could not and did not bother to hide.
The three looked from the token to him before taking a deep breath. However, they had already gone very far in berating him. So far in fact, that they saw no way to simply change the way their faces were in a second. And trying very hard to smile after all they had said to him, literally hurt their face.
Clearly, these were not individuals quite adept at hiding and shifting emotions,
"You're an Alchemist?" Asked one of them.
"This token says I am, so I must be" Hal said and drew back his hand.
"Well, why didn't you say so in the first place?' Asked another while the other two cleared their throats.
Hal rolled his eyes at them,
"Oh I don't know, Maybe because you were berating me from the moment I got here and gave me no chance to"
"Ah, yes. We did do that, didn't we? Anyway... Sir, you are surely of enough importance for admittance but it is still very expensive" said one.
Hal frowned,
"If I took the time to show you my token, surely, I can pay the fee" he said.
They nodded so fast, they looked like woodpeckers.
"Where do you wish to go?" One of them asked as he pulled up the runeslab interface to begin putting in the coordinates.
"Doxon" Hal said and the runemaster proceeded to input in the location.
"Very well, that would be 10000 Blue gems" said another.
"Eight thousand of the blue gems would be used to power the Teleportation circle while the rest is the percentage tax to be paid into the Duchy's coffers." Said the third who was looking at Hal with a skeptical expression and Hal's next words confirmed his skepticism,
"How about a discount?"
The three looked at him as though they could not believe what was coming out of his mouth right now,
"I thought you said you were good for it" said one and Hal stared that one in the face,
"I AM good for it. But I have absolutely no interest in forking out 10000 Blue gems without having been assured that it could not be reduced.
"Well, that just sounds like you're cheap" said the one with the interface who was already done inputting the coordinates.
'Ha ha ha, oh you don't know the half of it' Grimoire burst into laughter.
'Will you shut it?' Hal told it and then to the runemasters he said,
"Well, I really want a discount"
"Sorry, but there isn't one. Inter-Duchy travels are always expensive and range in prices depending on how distant the departing and arriving Duchys are from each other. Neighboring Duchys such as Silva and Doxon are the cheapest.
With this particular circle, the journey will take two days.
So once again, there is no discount. Unless you can provide evidence that you are undertaking this for official purposes. Then the 2000 Blue gems for the Duchy will be scrapped and you will only need to provide the Eight thousand to power the teleportation circle."
Hal went into deep thought.
So cheap and willing to shave off 2000 Blue gems was he, that he considered going over to the Alchemy Organisation for some kind of evidence of official purposes in Doxon.
Or maybe even ask from the Princess, although that seemed to have a lower level of success.
"Oh alright then" he said and finally gave in to provide them with the required gems.
Then with a heavy and aching heart, he stepped on the circle, activated it with Cosmic energy, and was sucked into the void.
...
Meanwhile,
While Hal was attempting negotiation, Elsa who left him only moments ago was arriving at Rose Petal Restaurant. A journey that really only took her so long because she was really taking her time and was not in that much of a hurry.
The one she was here to see would not leave so soon.
Hal had been right that asking him of his trip to the Dane territory was not really what she was curious about but that did not change the fact that hearing him call someone his fiancee without an ounce of falsehood visible on his face was quite... uncomfortable for reasons she had no intentions of divulging.
What she had actually wanted to ask him was what he wanted with the person she knew he had met inside this restaurant just the day before. However, as she could see how that could be viewed as intrusive, she resorted to asking from the other half of that meeting.
She walked through the doors of the restaurant and while ignoring the looks she got from those present, looks ranging from salivating from males and disapproving from females who felt her clothing was a little too skimpy for their conservative tastes, she noted the backroom which she made a beeline for.
Before she could actually enter into it, however, her path was blocked by the large muscled form of Ehrlich who knew not to let this strange and erotic-looking lady enter.
"Out of my way" Elsa said before Ehrlich could make a sound and with a casual ease that did not even interrupt her confident stride, she walked past the muscled man just as a repelling force flattened him against the wall.
The backroom was empty but that hardly mattered as she found a door, pulled it open, and began climbing the stairs towards what she assumed on account of who was most definitely occupying it, was a beautiful room on the restaurant's top floor.
A room that was in a whole section on its own and could not be entered through the corridors, doors, and other openings of the top floor.
Without actually announcing herself with a knock, Elsa walked in to see Tanya seated in front of her mirror and brushing her hair,
"You were never one for respecting people's privacy, were you Elsa?
Chapter 363 - Ordinance Harnessing.
For a few seconds after those 'welcoming' words, there was silence and even without the two saying a word to each other, there was an air of familiarity between them.
Tanya never looked away from her mirror as she brushed her hair that actually needed no grooming.
"I have to tell you, I was a little surprised when my perception picked you up. To what do I owe this... Pleasure?" She asked as she dropped the brush and turned in her chair to look at Elsa with what was clearly a false smile on her face.
"Well, I was in the neighborhood and thought I would drop by and say hello" Elsa said.
Tanya's eyes narrowed,
"And how exactly did you know I was here? While I am not exactly worried enough to lay out protective runes, I still laid enough to block any form of perception." She said.
Instead of answering, Elsa took a deep breath,
"It's been so long since we last met. Sixty years in fact. That's a long time to go by without actually sending a message or asking after an old friend" she said and glared at Tanya who chuckled.
"It is indeed a long time without contact with an 'Old friend' but who says I have to be the one to make the first move in a long road to reconnection. If I remember correctly, you were the one who left." She said and while she was piling, there was a bit of anger to be seen in her eyes.
Elsa shrugged,
"A difference in opinion" she said.
"No, it was jealousy. Jealousy that even with all the support and resources that were poured into you by your family back in Doxon, you could not make their one wish come true; Become better than the member of the Imperial family you were unfortunate to share a Generation with"
Elsa's lips tightened and without taking a single step, a repelling force was released from her form. A force much stronger than the one she had used against Ehrlich and was targeting the only other living being in the room with her.
Right before the repulse, which could be seen to be causing an actual physical phenomenon, touched Tanya, the Princess seemed to vanish from her seat which was reduced to dust and materialized on the bed.
The Ordinance Of Force.
The Ordinance of Speed.
Seated on her bed, Tanya twirled a lock of hair in her hand and rolled her eyes at Elsa who was now facing her,
"Going right for the attack. Really 'mature' of you. Even at the academy, you could never settle for less... Provocative measures."
Elsa smirked,
"I never heard you complain. On the contrary, you loved it."
Tanya paused and then, a wide smile spread over her face and she withdrew a little circular disk with Runes etched on it,
"Fifteen Minutes and you only make use of the Ordinance of Force while I will stick only to the Ordinance of speed. Neither of us is allowed to make use of any of the other Ordinances we are privy to"
"Fifteen minutes..."
Elsa nodded and did what looked like a pre-battle warm-up, complete with the cracking of her knuckles,
"I doubt it would take that long" she said.
Tanya rolled her eyes and tossed the disk on the ground, where it expanded and released a vast amount of Astral energy as the runes left the Disk and spun in the air and morphed the room into a space of finite void in the sense that it had boundaries.
It was empty and not unlike the void that exists between two teleportation circles.
The Disk was a void disk which was quite difficult to make and contained a time limit as it was not yet a true artifact and was not lasting. Its use involved morphing space into a void where two or more opponents could battle without worrying about damaging anything or the area around them.
This particular disk would only afford the two ladies Fifteen minutes before things were reverted to how they were supposed to be.
Immediately the morphing was complete, Tanya slammed her palms together and spread them to showcase a glowing green hexagram which she cast at Elsa.
The spell which had been cast with Tanya's bloodline energy was aided along by her ordinance of speed which made it impossible to evade. But Elsa did not wish to evade it.
She saw no need to.
Instead, she instinctively surrounded herself with her Forceful ordinance which acted as a repelling shield around her. It was not enough to completely block the spell but it had successfully stripped the spell of the Ordinance of speed that had been aiding it along.
While that in no way made the spell less potent, it gave Elsa the precious time she needed to cast a 7th-grade defensive skill which canceled out the spell... Or so she thought.
What she had not known was how the whole thing with the ordinance of speed and the Bloodline spell had been to take away attention from an insidious attack. One in the form of a blast of semi-saint energy...
*BAM!*
*BOOOM!!!*
So loud and explosive was the blast that had resulted from Elsa partially being able to block the semi saint energy, that had it not been for the void disk, the entire restaurant would have been destroyed.
And these were still mostly probing shots. The type that could be observed among sparring friends.
Such was the level of power and damage that resided within Semi-saints.
Especially between these two geniuses.
"Nnggh" Elsa groaned and looked up at the smug smiling face of her opponent,
"You're at the Mid-stage of the Semi-Saint Realm" Elsa said and it was not a question but a statement of fact from what she had felt from the blast of Semi-saint energy and how much impact it had on her despite getting partially blocked.
"Humph. What, so you think I spent the last sixty years missing you and not improving myself? That you remain at the Early stage proves what you have always been reluctant to accept. That I Am Better Than You."
At first, Elsa seemed speechless, and then she burst out laughing,
"Hahaha hahaha. Oh, you Fool!" With that she let out what it was she had been hiding in the form of a manifestation of her Forceful Ordinance.
Tanya's eyes widened,
"Ordinance Harnessing... Impossible" she mumbled.
The stages of Ordinance mastery went as follows; Insight, Harnessing, Incarnation, and Finally Paragon.
It was understandable that Tanya did not want to believe what she herself could sense. Cultivating to the mid-stage as she had, she could still believe, but to actually comprehend an ordinance to Harnessing in a matter of sixty years was quite frankly unfathomable to her.
"I didn't waste the past Sixty years. I just focussed on something more... Challenging" Elsa said with a grin before the circle of Her Forceful Ordinance Harnessing spread towards Tanya who made the mistake of attempting to outrun it with her Ordinance insight.
Effortlessly, almost as though all of her Ordinance based abilities were rendered useless, the Forceful Ordinance pulled her right back towards Elsa whose fist was pulled back with a wide smile as she prepared to deliver her blow powered with not just her cultivation base, Semi-Saint energy but also her Ordinance Of Force...
Chapter 364 - Of His Own Free Will...
While she might have been mostly powerless to resist the Force, Tanya was not powerless to at the very least lessen the impact of the blow with the use of her superior cultivation base.
*BAM!!*
Elsa's impactful blow landed squarely onto Tanya's palm which had been raised to intercept the blow.
With Elsa not being the first she had actually sparred against who had gained Ordinance Harnessing, Tanya knew the Ordinance was more than capable of covering up for the one-stage lower cultivation of its wielder.
As such, she knew what to expect and the resultant backblast that knocked her against what could only be described as the boundary of the space available by virtue of the Void disk did not really catch her by surprise.
What did surprise her or at least caught her unprepared was Elsa's viciousness as she was already upon her opponent in a second and ready to deliver a decisive victorious blow.
Tanya was not having that as she rolled out of the way.
Elsa smirked and grabbed at the air in front of her in an attempt to use her ordinance to bring Tanya closer but the Princess was quicker than her, having laid down Astral Rune traps on the very spot Elsa now stood upon.
As she did not have Astral sense, there was no way Elsa could have known about it, and even if she had, there was no assurance that she would not have still fallen victim.
Her eyes widened and she attempted to use Force to protect herself but it was not such an easy transition which had been what Tanya had been banking on. Especially since the Runes she had cast were Nullifying Runes which while only effective for a second was enough to allow her to close the distance between she and Elsa with her Ordinance of speed and then slam her palm against her chest to repel her with a Blasting Rune before she could reenact her protection.
*Bang!!*
While Elsa was still in mid-air, and before she could even attempt to ignore her aching pains and bring back her Ordinance Harnessing whose rhythm Tanya had now interrupted, the Princess was already in mid-air with her and casting another Spell.
This one however made contact and instantly repelled Elsa from the air right to the ground where it chained and restrained her to.
Now with her feet back on the ground, Tanya condensed a Cosmic attack infused with Semi-Saint energy which she charged up.
However, before she could actually go through with whatever she had planned (either intimidation or actual hurt and damage) a pink pentagram formed between Elsa's palms which could still wiggle around,
"I was wondering when you would cast a spell" Tanya grinned as she saw her old friend begin to make sure of a mischievous Bloodline spell of hers,
Elsa grinned as well, albeit slyly,
"Remember how it was only a passive spell? Not anymore." In a flash, the spell morphed into a thin and small pink arrow that shot right into Tanya's chest.
The Princess knew what her mistake was. She had allowed her old familiarity with Elsa to cloud her judgment and had been taking action based on things she knew about her when a lot had clearly changed in the space of Sixty years.
Then again, Elsa was mostly doing the same.
Anyway, the spell caused her green eyes to gain a pink tinge as it placed her into a suggestion where everything Elsa said seemed like a command, and knowing the spell's effect would not last on someone with a lot of willpower like Tanya,
"Loosen my Bonds"
Elsa stated her command quickly,
The tranced Tanya began to loosen the bond but almost immediately snapped out of it.
Clearly, her willpower was getting stronger as the years went by, however, the loosening had been enough for Elsa to free herself with the strength of her cultivation base, blast Tanya back with her Forceful Ordinance and then she summoned her pink-colored spear cosmic armament that was thick with Semi-saint energy and attempt to run Tanya through.
Tanya upon stabilizing herself summoned her Rose-colored sword cosmic Armament and parried away the spearhead just as the void space around them fizzled and showed signs Of collapsing.
A second later, they are back in Tanya's room and staring at each other while observing their various bruises and feeling a sense of satisfaction.
"I fell that was... Cathartic" Elsa said and pulled one of the other chairs in the room to sit in front of Tanya who was now seated atop her bed with her head down and not saying a single word.
Eventually,
"You Left" she spoke out and Elsa sighed.
Tanya then looked up and the hardness on her face showed how hard she was working to not let it show how much this subject got to her.
"You left me. You left the Royal Academy. You left the Imperial City. You... Left"
Elsa shrugged,
"I was needed at home"
Tanya scoffed,
"Come on, I don't need those false excuses. I know why you really left"
Elsa raised her brow,
"If you are about to say that I could not understand your determination to get involved in Imperial politics. Then you are half right."
Tanya frowned,
"When you decided to befriend the one you were meant to compete against, you should have at least attempted to understand her goals."
"I did understand your goals and I also understood how dangerous it would be. I always hoped you would grow out of it. But as the years dragged on, your ambition and interest in it only seemed to increase.
That said, it is a little narcissistic of you to think you were the only reason I left the Imperial City.
Anyways, fun as it is to reminisce, there was a reason for me seeking you out today."
Tanya looked her in the eye,
"And that brings me back to my question of how you knew I was here or did you just come in here to meet whoever was inside this room?"
Elsa began lightly tapping her thighs before speaking,
"While I was performing reconnaissance on a particular someone called Hal, he came in here and I was intrigued. Thanks to my espionage and Detective skills which I have gotten better at as well, by the way, and some deductible reasoning, I was fairly certain it was you.
Also, 'Rose Petal Restaurant', The rose being your favorite flower, was a big giveaway. If that was not what you would name your information gathering network, I don't know what is.
That said, I was not absolutely certain."
Long as Elsa's words had been, there was one main part of it that stuck out to Tanya who proceeded to inquire,
"Hal? You know Hal?" She asked.
"I don't just know him, I know his mother... Svetlana Doxon."
Now, this was information that was definitely news to Tanya who seemed to finally understand why those sapphire blue eyes had been so familiar to her. Clearly, they reminded her of the Blue-eyed witch. However, she never knew the Duchess of Doxon had a son. Which she was quick to relay to Elsa who gave her a few details on the circumstances.
"And does Hal know who his mother is?" She asked.
Elsa nodded,
"He does. So you can't involve him in your plots. You know that won't sit well with her." She said.
Tanya was silent for a while and then,
"No"
"What?"
"I said no. I do not deny that I was the one who approached Hal with a Proposition but I never pressured or threatened him to accept. In fact, he was all too glad to be in my service as long as he was adequately paid."
"Paid?"
This surprised Elsa as she had thought Hal was much more likely to be doing it for Merit points which he was sure Tanya would have promised and also have been capable of giving.
Tanya nodded and then shrugged,
"Regardless of who his parents are, he decided to accept my proposition of his own free will. Besides, what is it to you?" She asked.
Elsa frowned,
"I'm... a friend of the family"
"Well, that's all good and dandy, but my transactions with Hal who by the way never made any mention of having connections with any nobility and whose relationship with his mother is clearly estranged is between him and me alone.
Also, he's a talent. The kind of talent that I need in my corner in the pursuit of my goals which you have made very clear you have little to no interest in..."
Chapter 365 - Dell's Gate.
Two Days Later...
Hal materialized on top of a teleportation circle in what could only be described as the most dingy-looking Teleportation circle Building he had ever been in.
The whole place had an air of deficit about it that had Hal reeling as he could not and did not bother to hold back the curse,
"Those Motherfuckers!"
His anger was obviously all directed at the attending Runemasters back in the Silva Duchy and he could not be blamed.
Clearly, they had teleported him to a location that could not be farthest from his actual goal which was the Doxon capital. However, they could not take all the blame as it should be noted that Hal also neglected to tell them where he wished to be teleported to.
Those Eight thousand Blue gems were just enough for a trip to the Doxon capital which was much farther than the crap they had sent him to. In fact, he was willing to bet that there would be unused Blue gems that those three would be all too glad to put in their pockets.
'That's what you get when you're too focused on being cheap' Grimoire said and burst into laughter.
'What's so funny?' Hal flared up at the book which actually had its hysterical volume increase,
'Oh, I love it when you get this worked up. Especially in this case where you only have your cheapness to blame.' It said.
'I'm not cheap, I'm frugal' Hal retorted.
'Same difference'
The attending Runemaster was startled awake by Hal's cussing and instinctively looked over at the building door before he looked at the Teleportation circle and saw Hal stepping off of it with a frown on his face and an expression as though he were fighting with himself.
That the runemaster looked over at the door before looking at Hal was a testament to how few visitors this building and by extension city got by virtue of the Teleportation circle.
The Runemaster cleared his throat gruffly and looked over at Hal,
"Welcome, sir to Dell's Gate City where we have been told to be proud of being an actual gate to the greater part of the Doxon Duchy thanks to this annoyance of a Teleportation Circle.
The teleportation circle you just stepped off is the only one in the city and if you wish to exit this region with the use of an exiting Teleportation circle then you should proceed to the actual Dell city which I will not hide from you is a very long journey.
A journey in which you are likely to encounter some perils.
If you wish to remain at Dell's gate, however, then I do hope you enjoy your stay.
Now if you will excuse me, I will like to get back to my nap."
And just like that, the Attendant Runemaster slumped off into another slumber.
It was official...
Hal was speechless and he had been rendered that way by an absolutely incompetent-looking Runemaster.
Since there was clearly nothing more this man wished to tell him, Hal walked right out and made sure he did not forget to shut his mouth.
Outside of the building, it was almost afternoon, the weather was not unlike how it had been in Silva before his exit but the atmosphere couldn't be more different.
It was easily clear that Elsa's dressing while provocative and indeed on a level of its own was never going to stand out here.
Clearly, skimpy dressings and exposure of flat and delectable stomachs were as much the order of the day as Hal had learned.
Everywhere he looked, he observed sights that he was sure would have the Men of the Silva Duchy having occasional nose bleeds.
And yet, this city was on the same level as the old Salmon city and was even smaller in size. The only difference was that Dell's gate was considered important enough to actually have a Teleportation circle and be identified as a gate to the greater part of Doxon. Although from the Attendant runemaster's words, that seemed more of a burden than an honor, and Hal could see why.
As it was not a departing Teleportation circle, those who made use of it were not required to pay a tax to the city it resides in, and as such its existence did not contribute to their economy.
On top of that, it was clearly essential to have an attendant runemaster there not only to keep an eye and mend any damage but to also welcome those arriving on it which in itself was a scarce occurrence.
Hal sighed and began his walk away from the building with no intentions of lodging in any inn or accommodation. He might as well pull out his chariot right now and then have Karmen come out of the Harem space to operate it.
However, when he was making those plans, he saw a notice of a bounty pinned to the wall of a building that looked to be a law enforcement station.
The notice sought out anyone who would take care of a band of bandits at the outskirts of the city that always robbed travelers and merchants and were famous for resorting to extremely violent means.
It was said that their numbers numbered at least one hundred and they hardly resorted to making use of their complete force. At least not at the same checkpoint.
Usually, they separated and hit multiple groups at the same time.
Their leader was a ferocious man known as Red Beard.
The name actually had Hal cracking up inside,
'Really, Red beard? That hardly seems intimidating. Good old scarface was much better at picking his name.' He thought.
Now, with the notice being in such a small city both in size as well as power as this, the reward was far from enticing to Hal. Even when it stood at 10000 gold coins per bandit's head. With Red Beard's worth Thirty thousand Gold coins.
The way he saw it, that was one blue gem per head and three for Red beard's head. It was hardly a very enticing offer.
However, his eyes still lit up when he saw it and it was for no other reason than the stagnation he was now facing.
He could not really advance his cultivation all that much anymore for the moment. At least not without gobbling up numerous amounts of violent and rare combination resources like the Gem flower.
Which meant, it was time to place a little more focus on another trump card he had up his sleeves in the form of the thousands of Devil Beasts he had inside the Habitat.
If this city which Hal was sure at the very least had phenomenon realm cultivators could not take care of this themselves even though it was a real bother to visitors as well as traveling indigenes, then this gang of bandits had to be quite formidable.
And then upon defeating them, he would feed their bodies to his beasts who would then use it to further their evolution and get ever stronger.
He still wanted to go to the capital as soon as he could but he could spare the time to reap some easy targets for the purpose of strengthening his forces.
And so, Hal went into the Law enforcement station since if he was going to go through with this, he might as well do so while taking advantage of all information those who had already failed had to dish out to him.
Chapter 366 - Taking On A Bounty.
When Hal walked through the door of Dell's gate city Law enforcement station, he quickly garnered attention with the females who were quite captivated by his looks looking at him and trying their best not to swoon before wondering why they were being this way.
Fine, he was incredibly good-looking, but did he actually deserve to have their undivided attention, and make their loins burn with desire...
"Who the fuck are you?" The atmosphere that had been created for the females was immediately broken by what could only be described as a jealous inquiry.
At least that was how the ladies saw it.
Hal on the other hand, while not caring for the cuss word, saw nothing wrong with the question,
"My name is Hal and I came here to inquire about the bounty notice pinned to the outside." He said and pointed at the outside with his thumb.
Before the man who had asked his name could say another word, one of the ladies who Hal noted remained true to the skimpy dressing nature of the Doxon Duchy even in their law enforcing uniforms, beckoned for Hal to move closer,
"Oh is that so? Come over here then" she said with a bright smile.
"Oh thank you" Hal said and moved closer to her.
While her reaction was not all that different from the few other ladies in the station, she seemed the only one who could actually muster the courage to approach him.
He appreciated that and easily ignored the death stares he was getting from the men.
He was used to it by now.
"I'm Anne" the lady went a step further and introduced herself.
Hal smiled in acknowledgment.
"It's nice to meet you Anne" he said as she directed him to a round table which only one free seat.
She told Hal to take the free seat and then glared at the only man who was seated and coincidentally had been the one who asked Hal who he was. He stood up without a peep but with a glare at Hal who ignored him and exchanged looks with the other ladies seated at the table.
Maybe they could not yet be the first to speak to him but that did not stop them from flirting with him with their eyes.
"You're not from here, are you?" Anne asked.
Hal shook his head,
"Not at all. I just arrived from the Silva Duchy today"
The moment he mentioned Silva Duchy, he heard what was unmistakably a growl before...
*Puh*
... One of the guys spat on the ground in disgust.
"Silva Duchy. Of course... Why not? Always thinking they are better than everyone." He said and made sure it was clear he was directing his words at Hal who paused, looked up at him,
"I might not be better than everybody but I am sure I am better than you." He said before looking back at Anne who glared at the the man before smiling at Hal again,
"Really, the Silva Duchy? I never knew they make men this good over there" she said.
Hal shook his head with a smile,
"They don't. Now, what can you tell me about the notice?" Hal asked.
"Well, what more is there to say that has not already been printed on that comprehensive bounty notice.
The band of bandits has been a constant thorn on the side of Dell's gate city. They began operation about Ten years ago and since then have only grown both in strength as well as numbers.
When they first began, they were less aggressive against city folk and focussed more on other rival bandit bands at which time we tolerated them but we should have known already that they were merely marking and securing their territory.
That's not to say measures were not taken against them, just that they were not excessive measures. Especially when eventually, their reputation kept the other pesky bandit bands at bay.
However, when they actually began to hit travelers and perform raids on merchant camps, things began to get awry and it became ever so clear that we were suffering from our negligence"
'You think?' Hal could but help but make a derisive comment in his mind.
His comment was not directed at Anne herself but the leadership of this city who was clearly incompetent.
Meanwhile, Anne continued,
"So trade slowed down but never stopped completely. You see, the merchants worked out an agreement with the bandits. An agreement that granted them safe passage as long as they paid 'Tax' to the bandits.
Whatever tax they paid would then be multiplied and be reaped from their sales to us. So they still turn a profit while our city only seems to be degrading."
Hal frowned,
"What about Dell city?" He asked.
"What about them?" Asked the rude man.
"Well, shouldn't they have assisted with this problem of yours? I mean you ARE their gate, are you not?" Hal said but even before he could complete his words, he could see the answer in the dejected faces of the men and women.
Anne actually laughed but there was no mirth in her voice all through said laughter,
"Oh come on Hal. You are not naive enough to think Dell city actually gives a crap about us, are you? Because they don't. They are ready to let us continue to suffer as long as it does not affect their revenue.
The bandits have an agreement with the merchants but not with the people of this city. As such, traveling out of the city is still dangerous for us and without any actual monetary gain.
Especially since the bandits will be ready to take all we have.
However, the merchants coming from Dell city and who actually double their profits while still satisfying the bandits and aiding their continued growth will return to where they came from and in turn boost Dell city's economy with their profits.
Besides, we suspect... That not only did Dell city not wish to assist us, but they are also actually assisting the bandits to continue encamping us in here.
We are at their mercy and forced to satisfy ourselves with nothing more than existing for the sole purpose of enriching their coffers."
At first, at the end of it all there was silence and then the rude man spoke up,
"Now that you have heard this 'wonderful tale', what are you going to do?" He asked.
Hal raised his brows,
"Is that not obvious? I'll take on the bounty."
Funnily enough, the first one to make a skeptic comment turned out to be Anne,
"You and what army?" She asked.
"Actually, I will be doing it all on my own"
Anne frowned,
"What's your cultivation?" She asked.
"It does not matter what my cultivation is." Hal retorted.
"What is your cultivation?" She asked again and this time, her voice raised in tempo.
Hal released his pressure to show he was at the mid stage of the Cosmic Phenomenon realm.
The rude man looked smug,
"Are you making fun of us?" He asked.
Hal looked over at him but said nothing before he turned back to Anne,
"Anne, I know I can get rid of the Bandits and I don't see any reason why you should not give me this bounty. I mean, what do you have to lose?"
Anne sighed,
"You do realize that we have phenomenon realm experts in this city as well and they have been powerless against the bandits. The most they could do was pick away a few small. Guys who Red Beard would simply replace."
Hal looked her in the eye,
"What do you have to lose?" He asked her again but this time he stood from his seat and looked down at her.
Anne looked up at him,
"Nothing" she said in a faint voice "I have nothing to lose"
Chapter 367 - For The Man...
With the resignation on their faces taken as acceptance of him going after the bounty he was sure they still felt he was not possibly capable of handling, Hal moved on to further inquiries involving any information that could prove useful to him in his pursuit of Red Beard's bandit gang.
Anne sighed,
"That... is a tricky business. For one thing, the bandit camp is always shifting in location and is always impossible to pinpoint.
And further attempts to do so further result in us falling into an ambush. We've lost quite a few experts that way.
Not to mention that on the rare occasion that we are actually able to drive attacking bandits back, for some reason, whenever we are lucky to catch one of the attacking bandits alive, they find the courage to keep all information they have hidden."
Hal narrowed his eyes,
"Hidden, how?" He asked.
She shrugged,
"For a bunch of cowardly, robbing bastards, they are incredibly tight-lipped and it is an entire chore to get them to open up on what they know.
Nothing works. Not even torture. They really seem to fear Red beard even though he is nowhere near them and nothing we do comes even close to that fear."
At that point, the rude nan seemed to think of something,
"Well, we got close at one point."
Hal looked up at him,
"YOU did?" He asked "I find that a little hard to believe"
The rude man turned red,
"Well, it was actually Anne and the ladies but that was only because it was their turn at that time"
"Pfft, yeah right" Hal chuckled with skepticism.
Anne seemed to recollect this event but it did not seem as satisfying to her as it was to the rude man,
"Yea we did get close. We went extreme in our torture and the bandit actually cracked. Unfortunately, his heart gave out before he could actually give us any useful information."
Hal furrowed his brows,
"Just like that?"
"Just like that"
'That seems incredibly suspect, for his heart to actually give out when he was about to confess' he thought.
'Or maybe it's not suspect at all. They did say they went extreme with their torture. Maybe he could not take anymore and an attempt to speak of something he had been hurt for while trying to hide became the last straw.' Grimoire said and Hal truly appreciated the counter-argument.
After all, he really could very well be over thinking things.
He took a deep breath and then let it go,
"So in order words, if I don't want to search aimlessly for a bandit camp which upon discovery, I could very well walk into a trap, the best thing to do is to capture one of the tight-lipped bandits and have him lead me to the camp.
Should be easy" he said and stood up to face the door.
"E-E-E-Easy?" Anne repeated with a speechless expression on her face which when Hal turned back to face them, was reflected on all the other faces.
"I'm sorry, I misspoke... I meant to say easy and fun" he said with a bright smile that lit up his handsome face.
So shocked were the ladies by his statement that they did not swoon to the words that came out of that face that was handsome beyond compare.
Meanwhile, Hal changed his trajectory to the bunch of parchments on a desk a few meters away from where the law enforcers were gathered.
It was a desk that was quite close to the door. And he riffled through them to find the one he was searching for; A map of the outskirts of Dell's gate city which marked the various bandit checkpoints.
He rolled up the map,
"I'll be borrowing this" he announced and walked out of the law enforcement building to find the most unpopulated alley in the city and enter his Harem space there.
Once inside the mansion where time flow sped up ten times, he spread his perception about the whole mansion and found most of the ladies were cultivating and the ones that weren't were busy with whatever pleased them.
However, it was one Lady in particular that piqued his interest and it was none other than Karmen who was clutching a robe around herself and looking more nervous than he had ever seen her.
The only other time he had seen her nervous was back in Holger estate when she was still a slave to be sold.
However, this time unlike back then, had a happy element about it.
Hal walked over to the room and without bothering to knock or announce his presence, he went right inside and could easily tell that apart from the robe, Karmen had nothing else on.
There was a vulnerability about her that instantly told Hal what this was about.
He smiled lightly while trying his best not to look too aggressive and worry her any more than she already was,
"They told you didn't they?" He said and knowing he was referring to Olivia and Lillian, Karmen nodded slowly,
Hal sighed but knew what the Blood knight commander needed at the moment was silence. Silence with which she could gather the courage to go after what she wanted.
And sure enough, eventually, Karmen stood from the bed and let the robe she held around herself drop to the floor where it pooled around her ankles.
Then she stepped out of them and towards Hal where she began to loosen his clothes with shaky hands.
Hal began to release his lust demon pheromones in the hope of wading some of the nervousness she was feeling, but Karmen upon perceiving it and having been told of its capabilities by her subordinates shook her head lightly,
"Not yet" she said
"Very well" Hal said with a smile and withdrew it back into his body just as she completely bared him for her eyes to feed upon and she flushed red at the sight.
With how hardcore she was in battle, it was easy to forget that Karmen was in fact still a virgin. Having not being used by the Holgers and at that time, not of enough value to be sold and then used.
She went lower and knelt before him to grab his hefty cock which even when flaccid was of incredible size and perfect shape. She had heard from the other two who were more experienced in the matter on how even when flaccid he was bigger than the average man.
She needed no comparison to know it was true.
Tentatively, she stretched her tongue and gave the sleeping organ a long lick. A lick after which, like many others before her, she fell in love with his taste.
Whatever she had been told of it did not do it justice at all and before she knew it, she was indulging fully in its delectable taste.
*Fap* *Fap* *Fap*
*Slurp* *Slurp* *Slurp*
She slobbered off Hal's cock with her saliva and was incredibly pleased with herself as it began to react to her ministrations and went from flaccid to half erect.
Hal for his part, enjoyed her ministrations while he gave her little tips on how to better enhance the experience.
For example, he cautioned her on the excessive or any use of her teeth for that matter and she took all his tips and worked hard to adjust and make it pleasurable for him.
For the man who saved her from slavery and with whom she saw a new future where she would undoubtedly become an expert and use her strength to accomplish his goals.
For the man who would always make her swoon.
For the man, she had given her all to...
Chapter 368 - Itchy. R-18
At some point, Karmen paused her fellatio to rest her mouth before attempting deep throat but Hal would not have that and pulled her up and then put one of her nipples into his mouth and sucked while he teased the other with his thumb and forefinger.
"Annghh" Karmen moaned and grabbed his head to pull him close to her chest and if possible, enhance the pleasurable suckling experience.
Hal was more than happy to indulge as he increased his suction force.
While he sucked her nipple and teased the other, he stretched his other hand down south to her almost bare pussy that was not so on account of a landing strip and felt how wet she had become.
And she was still leaking immensely.
All talk about the fellation being for Hal could never be a hundred percent true as all the ladies who had indulged, all felt the impact it had on them on account of how pleasurable it was... To them.
Anyway, Hal began with a near casual rub of her slick private part but before he could fully indulge, Karmen closed up her thighs.
Only for a while though before she spread it wide to welcome... No, to plead for his touch.
It was a plea Hal was ready to heed as he began with a light fingering that caused her legs to lose all strength and she wobbled towards the ground. Held up only by Hal's strength.
Her arms around his head had slackened as well and Hal saw they had reached the end of all they could hope to achieve on their feet as he picked her up, laid her on the bed, and went back to suckling on her perky breasts and pointy-from-arousal nipples.
And then he switched to the other while teasing the one he just left with his fingers.
All the while, he continued his fingering of Karmen's pussy, and it increased the volume of liquid her pussy produced exponentially.
"Oh master, yes. More. Suck me more" she moaned with her hands now back around Hal's head to press him into her chest once again.
Hal indulged her wishes while he used his touches to map out the spots I'm her general pussy area that would really get her worked up.
He made sure to exploit all the knowledge he got to enhance the experience for the virgin girl whose hymen he could feel and knew to stay away from for the time being.
Then he pulled away from her nipple and went higher to suckle at Karmen's neck and ear lobes. Breathing in her delectable feminine scent that also had the wild edge of a blood fiend.
Karmen absolutely loved his kisses but her hand was now on his as Hal's attention with his fingers seemed to now be directed at the little nub at the top of her pussy.
"Master... Please..." She gasped.
Hal chuckled and stopped his suckling of her neck long enough to look into her eyes,
"Would you like me to stop?"
Karmen's eyes cleared up and widened immediately,
"Stop? No, of course not. It's just that... I feel... Itchy" she said.
Hal smiled,
"Itchy? That's normal I guess"
Karen nodded,
"Yeah, so why don't you put it in now?" She asked and impatience was clear not only in her words, visage but also the low arching of her back in which she worked to thrust her lower half more at him.
"Patience, dear Karmen. Have some patience. You don't need to be in a hurry" he said.
Then he moved lower towards that flooding pussy of hers which he had wanted a taste of since this all began.
He stretched his tongue for a tentative lick and then began to fully eat her out.
Thrusting his normal-sized and normal-length tongue into her to enjoy to the fullest all the deliciousness her pussy had to offer.
Karmen squirmed in the bed and grabbed at the sheets while she tried to keep her mouth tightly shut so as not to allow any embarrassing moan of pleasure to leak out.
Hal chuckled in his mind at her naïveté of attempting to stop the unstoppable and prevent the inevitable.
*Slurp* *Slurp* *Slurp*
To say Karmen was enjoying Hal's lips on her pussy would have been a huge understatement and soon, as Hal had predicted, she truly could no longer hold in her moans and had no choice but to shout it out to all who could and would hear.
"AARRRNNGGHHHH, OH MASTER I WANT MORE. LOVE ME MORE. I LOVE IT SO MUCH" was only some of the things she said,
Others were...
"OH FUCK, OH FUCK, OH FUCK, OH FUCKKKKKK!!!!!"
... As she climaxed and squirted her pussy juice into Hal's face and the Blue-eyed Devil lapped it all up and did not allow any of the tasty liquid to go to waste.
Then Hal allowed himself a break from pleasing her pussy,
"And that my dear, is why you don't hold in your moans. You could explode" he said with a chuckle and went back to his ministrations.
Ministrations that had his cock as hard as could be and as angry as it always was. It was ready to conquer a new pussy it had so far not being opportune to visit.
The more Hal pleased her pussy, the hornier he became, and soon, he decided to take the advice he had given Karmen which was to not hold anything in.
He rose from her pussy and placed his cock at her entrance.
Feeling the cock head at her pussy entrance brought Karmen completely back from the orgasmic high she had been in.
This was it. She was finally doing it. She was finally giving it all to him.
Hal leaned towards her and stroked her face,
"Are you scared?" He asked.
Karmen nodded.
"Don't be" Hal told her and thrust into her, breaking her hymen.
In one go, he had half of his full and magnificent length inside her, and Karmen, while not feeling any actual pain, could still feel her pussy stretch to accommodate the width of that wonderful organ that brought her pleasure from the inside.
"Oh..." Was all she could think to say as she wound her arms around Hal's neck and pulled him down for a kiss.
Hal groaned into the kiss as he felt how tight she was around him which resulted in immense pleasure that had his whole being in sync with the act he was indulging in at the moment.
Then he pulled back and actually found it a tad bit hard to do so, because tight as Karmen already was from being a virgin just three seconds ago, she still tightened around him with a grip that would have had a lesser man groaning not from pleasure but pain.
Hal on the other hand loved it.
He thrust back into Karmen slowly to allow her to get used to his size and got more than half of his cock into her this time around.
He had been going slow to be considerate of her but as it turned out, Karmen was not all for that...
"Master, Fuck me. Fuck me Harder!" She moaned and wound her legs around his waist to pull him even more into her pussy until his full length was within her snatch and his cock head was hitting the very back of her pussy.
And she loved it.
She felt so full... So complete.
Hal reveled in the feeling as well and almost instinctively, he let out his pheromones, activated Erogenous touch, and initiated {Mind meld}.
All of which brought the session to a whole other level...
*Pah* *Pah* *Pah*
Hal's thrusting quickly increased in speed as he and Karmen fell into a comfortable rhythm that had her reacting with the lifting of her hips and smacking at his pelvis right at the moment he thrust fully into her.
Not to mention the pleasurable smacking feeling she was enjoying from the contact of his large and heavy balls with her perky ass.
*Smack* *Smack* *Smack*
Chapter 369 - Karmen Wants More. R-18
*Pah* *Pah* *Pah*
The session continued in full swing and once Karmen gained more confidence, Hal decided it was about time to show her that this was far from being the height of what she could experience.
He pulled out of her and before the Blood Knight commander could begin to miss having him within her, Hal propped her unto all fours and thrust into her once again, absolutely enjoying how her insides clung to him upon insertion.
"Mmnngghhh" Karmen moaned deeply with satisfaction as Hal filled her up once again and also arched her back as he squirted juices with commendable force.
Hal continued with his thrusts which never lessened in intensity as that was clearly how she wanted it and he was only ever so happy to indulge her.
While he thrust into her, has leaned forward and grabbed her perky breasts to massage them all the while and continued to bombard Karmen's senses with more pleasure than she had expected.
With the session crossing its first-hour mark, Karmen was already losing the ability to string meaningful words together. She has now resorted to making use of her groans and moans of pleasure to showcase her appreciation.
She was no longer even asking for thrusting tempo (faster or slower, Harder or gentler) but with their minds connected through {Mind Meld}, she did not really need to say anything.
Whatever she wished to express which her moans and groans could not pass across was accomplished with the occassional tugging at their Mind meld link.
Then again, even without that, no matter the tempo Hal chose, she would have still been satisfied.
In fact, quite unlike practically all the other women Hal had been with sexually thus far, she was one of the few who he could see was not attempting to one-up him from the get go.
Karmen was perfectly satisfied with being submissive and letting Hal hold the reins from start to finish while she did her best to make the experience more pleasurable to him and by consequence, more pleasurable to her.
However, she need not worry about that because being a horn dog as Hal was, there was no way intercourse would not be pleasurable to him. All the tricks in his arsenal by virtue of his bloodline were inherited from a woman/being whose whole existence was based on selfishness.
Surely, there was no way he would not get his jollies. After all, to paraphrase the Devil Queen Nihasa herself "He was not selfless"
Speaking of Hal, he leaned back away from Karmen's back and stopped gropping her breasts to focus on her shapely ass which while not being the plumpest and largest he had ever seen, still rippled upon every contact his pelvis had with them.
How he loved that ass!
Much as he was an avid fan of the Breast and prided himself as a boob man, in this position they were in, Karmen's boobs could never compete with how wonderful her perky ass was in this presented-to-him format it was in.
He charged his hand completely with Erogenous touch, drew it back and brought it down on her ass...
*Smack!*
The sound was quite resounding but loud as it was, it was nothing compared to the fireworks that went off in Karmen's mind as Hal's hand made contact with her ass.
Suddenly, she froze and her muscles locked into place as she, at that time, seemed completely oblivious to all that was going on around her, including Hal rubbing at the red imprint of his hand on her ass,
And then she began to tremble and for the first time since they Passed the first hour mark, Karmen found her speaking voice and actually said words other than her moans and groans.
"Ohhhhhhh... Yessssssss... Master, spank me more. I want more" she said while getting ever closer to climax.
Was Hal surprised by her reaction?
No, he was not.
Was he put off?
Absolutely not!
He smiled,
"If that's what you want..."
*Smack*
"Oh..."
*Smack*
"Ahhngghhh"
*Smack*
"Yes!"
*Smack*
"Master!"
*Smack*
"Oh, master Yes!..."
*Smack*
"I'm cumminggggggg..."
Following that announcement came more trembling from Karmen while she tightened more than ever around Hal which brought him to climax alongside her,
"Nngghhh"
Hal groaned and released what could only be described as gallons of spunk right into Karmen's pussy before she and he slumped sideways on the bed.
The two breathed deeply and Hal was really expecting Karmen to slum off into blissful satisfied slumber but the Blood knight commander repositioned herself in a way that had her kneeling between Hal's legs as she began to suck off his half-erect cock which stood straight to a full mast that moment her lips touched it.
In the process, she tasted both her juices which coated the massive organ as well as remnants of his cum which granted her a sudden boost in energy.
When she raised her head after that and looked down at Hal with a smile, Hal knew the potency of his seed was information she already had and that she knew exactly what she was doing when she sucked him off.
Karmen did not deny it,
"I want more" she said.
Hal made a casual wave in the direction of his cock,
"By all means, have your fun" he said and placed his hands behind his head as his sapphire blue eyes sparkled as Karmen stood up to kneel with her legs on either side of him and lower herself slowly onto his cock.
She had truly blossomed.
"Mmnnggh"
She moaned as Hal's cock slowly inched into her until her ass was completely resting on his thighs to announce that Hal's full length was now inside her.
Then she rose slowly to smack back down on him.
*Pah*
At first, she seemed to be hesitant but soon, she was going at it with as much speed as she could.
Her breast swinging up and down but always regaining their perfect shape as she brought herself as well as Hal ever closer to climax.
At some point, she began to slow down and it became clear that the effect of Hal's seed was beginning to wear off so Hal took over once again. Karmen's back hit the bed again and Hal raised one of her legs to spread open her innermost part even more to his view before he thrust in and pounded Karmen until she reached the highest orgasmic peak she could hope to achieve this night just as Hal came inside her and she fell into the blissful satisfied slumber that marked the end of the session.
Then Hal stood from the bed, went for a dip in the bathtub that was in a partitioned section of her room.
After freshening up, he put on a robe and went to the best thinking space in the entire mansion, his large study that was quite empty apart from a Desk and chair. It was on the desk he laid down the map he had gotten from the law enforcement building and observed it in detail.
Maybe, there was something here that the Dell's Gate law enforcers had missed that could lead to the ever-shifting camp of the Red beard's bandit camp.
Soon, he was not the only one in the study and the newcomer chose to announce her arrival by placing her hands on his shoulders and begin to massage them,
"You've been busy" Rita said and Hal chuckled,
"But not as busy as I presume I will be tomorrow."
Chapter 370 - Company. Part 1
Hal gave her a quick recap of all that happened so far and what he intended to do the next day (normal time),
"Want me to join in?" She asked.
He looked back at her over his shoulder,
"Do I want you to join me when I brutally kill a bunch of bandits just so I can feed their bodies to my Devil Beasts? Yes, Yes I believe I do" he said with a bright smile.
Rita giggled and slapped him lightly on the arm,
"Couldn't you sugar coat it a little? I'm a lady" she said.
Hal turned around completely and grabbed one of her breasts to squeeze it ever so slightly,
"You don't have to tell me that" he told her with a wolfish smile that brought redness to Rita's face but she rolled her eyes at him as she edged past him to eye the map on the desk.
"You're trying to decide which checkpoint we go to first right, so how about this one?" She said and pointed at one of the checkpoints on the map.
Hal gave the map a casual look before he shrugged,
"I wasn't actually serious about making a decision, I was just going to any of them that... Feels right. I highly doubt it makes a difference which one I choose" he said while nuzzling into the side of her neck,
"Actually, it might matter. Look..." Rita said and pointed at the map again,
"I don't know about you, but there is a sense of importance and urgency about these three locations. For one thing, the strokes that mark them as checkpoints are much darker compared to the others."
Hal had to admit that it hardly made sense to be skimpy on pen strokes when highlighting locations of interest in regards to an elusive and dangerous band of bandits.
Surely, there was something the law enforcers were communicating in the darker strokes and Hal was willing to bet that upon accepting that there was not much they could do about it, the darker strokes now served as a warning for areas to avoid for having a higher possibility of attack.
As for how he came to the conclusion that the law enforcers had accepted their fate, well, for one thing, they did not look like they were all that eager in their fight against Red Beard's band of bandits, and secondly, they posted a Bounty notice.
"Then it's settled. Tomorrow, we journey through all three checkpoints until they bite. Now that that's settled..." Hal said and turned Rita around to face him before capturing her lips,
"Mmm" Rita moaned into the kiss and when they separated, she chuckled,
"You're always so eager"
"Do you want me to stop?" Hal asked in a would-be polite tone of voice and his eyebrow raised.
Rita wrapped her arms around his neck...
"gods no"
... And pulled him closer to pick up where he had left off.
...
Hal had no intentions of going after the bandits until the next day (normal time) so he used the accelerated time in the Harem space indulging in the bodies of his ladies all except Karmen who actually spent most of that time sleeping blissfully and once she awoke, she cultivated and refined Hal's essence as he had permitted her through the contract.
She was done with it all by the time Hal was ready to go after the bandits and was more than eager and ready to indulge in another session that from what she had been told was bound to be much more wonderful than her first time with him.
The accelerated time inside the Harem space actually amounted to Ten Days and only towards the end of it did Hal refine all the essence he had gotten to attempt an increase in his cultivation after which he tried not to be disappointed.
Rita was now also heading ever closer to the mid-stage of the cosmic Phenomenon realm and Hal saw it fit to share with her the eventual roadblock ahead.
The only lady Hal did not spend time with while he was in the Harem space was Marla who was attempting to further the mastery of her Divine grade physique.
Quite an uphill battle to be perfectly honest in regards to the process's difficulty.
Eventually, he stepped out of the Harem space to see it was nearing afternoon and walked towards the very end of the city until he was out of it completely and heading appropriately out of the view of Dell's gate city folk.
It was then that he brought out his Golden chariot and opened up the portal to the Harem space to welcome the exit of Rita, Lillian, Olivia, and Karmen.
Together they entered the carriage with Lillian proceeding to its helm to power and drive it to the first of three checkpoints.
Karmen joined her.
Hal took a deep breath and was all smiles as he laid down on the long seat of the carriage with his head on Rita's lap.
Rita stroked his long black hair and said,
"I have to say, plans to trap bandits and have them lead us to their hideout aside, this has the potential of being quite the enjoyable ride."
Hal looked up at her,
"You can't seriously mean that" He said.
Rita shrugged,
"Well, I do. I mean look outside at the beautiful scenery. It just feels... Alive"
"I think you are missing the part where it's a region ruled by the tyranny of bandits"
Rita looked down into his eyes,
"I don't see how that should affect the beauty of the region. It's the people that are terrorized, not the environment" She said.
"The environment suffers by consequence. Besides, I see what this is all about" Hal said and closed his eyes.
Rita eyed him, having guessed what it was he was about to refer to,
"Oh, what is it 'all about'?" She asked.
Without opening his eyes, Hal said,
"You're being sentimental. You're sentimental about being back in the Duchy you were born in and it's bringing up all these feelings within you"
Rita gasped as though she could not believe what he was saying,
"Oh come on. I am not being sentimental... Olivia, what do you think of the scenery?" Rita asked.
Olivia looked from Hal, who now had his eyes opened again, to Rita who looked to be desperate for someone to back her up in this argument.
Hal sensing a moment in which two ladies gang up against him decided he would not have it.
However, before he could say a word,
"I would rather not get involved..." Olivia began but Hal interrupted,
"Ah, she's on my side" Hal said.
"What? She just said she doesn't want to get involved" Rita retorted.
"Yeah, that's because you scare her and she would rather not upset you by admitting she agrees with me" Hal said.
"She's not scared of me" Rita said in outrage and Olivia spoke up again,
"Actually, I was not done. I meant to say, I would rather not get involved but the scenery is indeed beautiful" she said.
Hal sat up with his eyes widening comically,
"What?"
At that moment, Lillian spoke from where she was controlling the carriage,
"We are coming up on the first checkpoint" she announced and Hal who had his Astral perception scouting the outside smiled when he sensed the men lying in ambush in quite an organized fashion.
In fact, there was something about the manner in which they were organized and ready to strike that told Hal this was not an impromptu attack that lacked proper planning,
"As it turns out, we won't have to tour the other checkpoints as we already have company..."