"Nghnn~~ F-faster~~ F-faster! Aghnn~~!"
Alice's latest orgasm rang out through the thin walls of the mansion, her cries weaving together with the loud, rhythmic claps of Ethan's hips against her buttocks and the relentless creaking of the bed frame.
Lucky for them, they were essentially alone in the building.
Well... almost. They had completely forgotten that Evelyn was sleeping in the room next door.
"Ugh... won't these damn people let me sleep?"
Evelyn's whisper was low and strained, her eyes squeezed shut as she lay on her back, fighting to keep herself still.
She was failing.
She was naked, her right hand pressed into the full, tanned weight of her own breast, fingers sinking into the warm, pliant flesh as she squeezed slowly.
Her left hand had already made its way down, gliding over the firm, defined muscles of her abdomen before slipping between her shapely, curvy thighs.
She extended one finger, her index finger, long and delicate.
The cool night air drifting in through the half-open window brushed against her mons pubis, the pale skin stretched taut over a fat, protruding mound nestled in a deep, soft valley.
She pressed inward, feeling her finger sink into the wet warmth, reaching her pink interior.
Her grip on her breast tightened, fingers dimpling the soft flesh, her pink nipple stiffening under the pressure as she slid a second finger between the lips of her vulva and found her clitoris.
"Ah~~"
The gasp escaped before she could swallow it, her teeth clamping down after the fact.
It was that damn Lords's fault. All of it.
What had she ever done to deserve being dragged back from death's embrace only to end up serving someone like him?
She closed her eyes tighter, her fingers moving in slow, deliberate circles, and then Alice's moans surged through the wall again, louder and more breathless than before.
"Fuck... fuck... FUCK~~"
Her fingers moved faster.
Her back arched up off the mattress, and the hand that had been gripping her breast released, fingers twisting into the sheets instead, knuckles whitening. Her freed breast swayed with the motion, heavy and full, bouncing gently against her ribs.
Sweat had begun to gather across her naked body, small beads of it trailing down the curves of her skin.
Moonlight poured through the half-open window and painted every line of her figure in pale silver, catching the subtle borders of her tan lines, making the contrast between golden and pale skin shimmer softly.
"You... bastard~~ I'm going to~~ I'm~~ aghnnn~~"
Her voice broke apart into fragmented murmurs, hips rising sharply off the bed as deep tremors rolled through her from somewhere low and central, her thighs clamping around her own hand.
The orgasm hit like a wave breaking from the inside out, her pussy clenching and squirting as it spread through her entire body in rolling pulses.
"Ah~~ nghnnn~~"
She collapsed back into the mattress, every muscle going slack at once, her breasts settling with a soft, slow sway as the tension drained out of her completely.
It felt good. Better than she wanted to admit, which meant she would not be admitting it.
"I'll make him train twice as hard tomorrow..."
She breathed the words into the quiet room, and let sleep pull her under.
The next morning, Ethan woke late.
Soft sheets, warm weight, and the slow, steady rhythm of Alice's breathing against his chest.
"Ugh..."
He stretched, dragging a hand through his golden hair and turning his head toward the window. Sunlight was already well into the room.
It had been a long night.
With a quiet grunt, he eased himself out from under Alice without waking her, pulled on light clothes, and left her curled in the sheets.
His body still ached from the training the previous day, muscles protesting with every movement, but he kept it off his face. He circulated his aura steadily as he walked, letting it thread through the soreness and ease it back.
He stepped out of the room and nearly walked into Evelyn.
She was standing just outside with her arms crossed, expression hovering somewhere between irritated and composed, one foot tapping the floor once in restrained emphasis.
"You know, the walls here aren't exactly thick."
Ethan looked at her for a moment, then laughed, full and open. "Oh... and you're the one to tell me that? Hahahaha!"
Her expression shifted instantly, eyes cutting sideways and away, a flush rising fast along her cheeks.
The implication was obvious. If she could hear Alice, then she could be heard just as easily.
Grumbling under her breath, Evelyn simply fell into step behind him as he headed for the door.
"Where are you going?" she asked once they were outside, the morning air cool and carrying the faint smell of turned earth from the fields. "To see the farmers' work?"
"Yes, but not yet. I want to inspect the guard barracks first, and I need to start thinking about housing as well."
The pop summoning card he'd used was already counting down. In six days, twenty people would arrive, with at least ten more expected from Goldenveil's recent uptick in appeal.
That meant houses, and possibly an expanded barracks if any of the newcomers were young and willing to fight.
Fortunately, the Goldenveil guard barracks weren't far.
Unfortunately, that was perhaps the kindest thing that could be said about them.
It was a poor shack of a building, sitting beside a small, dust-packed training ground. Inside: rusty swords, a dormitory sized for twenty, and a back office where Alaric was.
The captain had been leaning back in his chair with a relaxed expression that evaporated the moment Ethan walked through the door with Evelyn at his side.
He swallowed whatever was sitting in his chest and stood up straight.
"My lord, to what do I owe your visit!" Alaric's hand came down against his leather breastplate in a sharp slap, his smile arriving a half-second too late to look natural.
"Nothing much. I plan to expand the guard soon and wanted to see things for myself." Ethan moved through the barracks at an easy pace, taking it all in.
It was a miserable place, like most of Goldenveil, but relatively well maintained given its limitations.
He made his way to the weapons storehouse.
Two sets of leather armor with steel reinforcements. A few dozen swords, axes, and bows, most of them untouched for months, the neglect plain on every surface.
"Ugh... who's the incompetent person in charge of this?"
Evelyn lifted a sword from the rack and ran one finger along the blade.
The rust came away on her skin. She pushed a thin thread of aura into the metal and the iron simply shattered, pieces clattering to the floor.
Alaric's jaw tightened as he stepped forward and snatched what remained from her hands, placing it back with more force than necessary.
"Our last blacksmith died a few months ago. We have no one to maintain the weapons and no one to expand the guard with either."
He turned to face Ethan directly, the fake pleasantness gone now.
"And after your subjugation mission next month, I doubt there will be much left of my men regardless."
'Oh... so you actually care about your men.'
Ethan smiled at that, reaching up to scratch his chin thoughtfully.