In a room next to Plantesa Court the group was gathered. Jack finally felt free. For one he was out of his cage and could feen the sunlight. Next he could comfortably check his stats.
---
[Name: Jack Der Quiver]
[Species: Sanquilisme Slime (Blood-Healing-Weapon)]
[Level: 8]
[Slime Cannibalism Commited: 3]
[Spiders ate: 1]
[Skills: Slime Throw Level 2, Blood Forging Level 1- > 2, Heal Mucus Level 1, Slime Pact Level 1, Slime Tentacle Level 2, Moonlight Infusion Level 1 -> 2]
[Magic Weapons absorbed: Silver Moonlight Dagger]
[Titles: Husband of Jeanne D'Amain, Bearer of Nimue's Geas]
[HP: 50 ]
[Mana: 50]
[Stamina: 25 ]
[Strength: 28]
[Intelligence: 30]
[Handholding Points: 0]
---
He exhaled. Either he was incredibly poor when it came to handholding points or the system was designed as a casinowith terrible payouts. Either way, it made him feel broke.
Sylva nudged Jack out of his thoughts.
"Come on little one let me see the process," her hand was glimmering in a golden hue, ready to bind.
"Let's do Jeanne first," he said.
The priestess didn't resist. She didn't smile. She reluctantly extended her good arm, the pale skin scarred by the sigils of a goddess she was forced to betray. Her fingers trembled.
"Okay what do I do?" she asked.
Jack thought to himself. The court required him to form a pact that prevented Aria and Jeanne from hurting an elf or their property. But besides that, nothing else was established. He looked at Jeanne and Aria. Jeanne looked like a martyr who'd accepted her fate. Aria was also resigned but he could see in her crimson eyes that she wanted to run.
"Okay," he said and used the skill on Jeanne.
"I Jack Der Quiver bind you Jeanne D'Amain to a pact where your will can't do harm to Vylara or anyone within it."
A golden string formed and attached itself to her chest, just over her heart.
"And-"
Jeane immediately squished any chance Jack had of adding more rules or having some fun, by snapping her hand shut, her palm a cage around him.
"That's all..." he muffled.
[Slime Pact with Jeanne has been formed: Oath of Vylara.]
[Should Jeanne break this pact, she will be forced into handholding.]
"What?!" Jeanne squealed. "I'm not going to break the pact. No need for that last part. It's humiliating."
Aria burst into laughter, "That is fitting. A holy priestess, forced into the sin of skin."
But Sylva started rubbing her chin, her moss-green eyes thoughtful. "The bond is much deeper than anticipated. The consequences are personal, not merely systemic."
This was weird even for Jack. He didn't add that last part at all. He figured it must have something to do with her being a priestess.
It was Aria's turn. She held up her hand towards the slime. She was holding her eyes closed, waiting for the bond to form. "Don't add anything weird," she warned.
"Of course not," he replied.
"I Jack Der Quiver bind you Aria Voss to a pact where you can't do harm to anyone in Vylara or anyone within it."
A red string attached to her. Unlike Jeanne, her's was not over her heart but instead on her fang.
[Slime Pact with Aria has been formed: Oath of Vylara.]
[Should Aria break this pact, she will be forced into daily blood donations to the slime.]
"I'm your master now," Jack said in a playful tone.
The hybrid rolled her eyes.
Now that the pacts were complete Jack actually wondered if they were good enough. He would be punished with death yet they have personal punishments. It felt sort of unfair. On Sylva's hand, he did a 180 and faced her.
"Aren't their punishments too weak compared to mine?" Jack asked Sylva.
The judge's serene expression didn't change. "Yggdrasil deals in balances, little one," she said, her voice a soft rustle of ancient leaves.
"Besides you would die if these two break their pact," Sylva said matter of factly.
Jack choked on air.
"Excuse me? What do you mean?"
The elf put a hand over her heart in apology. "Yggdrasil recognizes them not as separate beings, but as appendages of you."
Jeanne smirked, "So if I commit a crime my dear husband would suffer for me?" she asked. There was a devious glint in her eye that Jack hadn't seen before, and he was not a fan.
"That is exactly how a husband and wife should be," Aria added sarcastically, stretching languidly. The predatory laziness in her crimson eyes made Jack's gelatinous form quiver.
He was now a walking, talking death sentence, bound to a rebellious vampire and a hypocritical priestess.
"Aww," Sylva said. Her moss green eyes were almost hypnotising as they stared at Jack, "The two of you need to bond more. Go to the hot springs. Or perform an Elven Marriage ceremony."
Jeanne's face turned to horror.
"An Elven Marriage Ceremony... no." she said firmly. The very idea of another sacred ceremony, so soon after her vows to the Goddess had been shattered, felt like sacrilege compounded with sacrilege.
"Your choice, of course," Sylva's voice remained gentle, yet carried the unyielding authority of ancient wood.
The judge left the group to their own devices, and silence descended like a heavy wool blanket. Leena who had been quiet this whole time finally took out her notes.
"The Plantesa Court's decision stands but now the details must be registered. Starting tomorrow, all three of you will be considered citizens under special observation."
She tapped the pen against the pad, "You will have to work or study here in Urianthe. At least for a year. After that you can request to travel within Vylara."
"Also-"
Someone from the outside burst in. An elf that looked suspiciously like Leena. It was Solana's daughter and also Leena's mother.
She immediately hugged Leena. "You did a wonderful job honey."
Leena, the composed lawyer, blushed a deep crimson. "Mom stop it! Not in front of my clients."
Her mother eyed the group with a professional yet curious stare. "Thank you for trusting my daughter."
She turned to Jeanne and Aria. "My name is Laurel. I will be your cultural liaison for the duration of your stay."
The two girls thanked Laurel but Jack, the ever observant slime, asked an important question.
"I could have chosen a different lawyer?"