The m found Kazue trailing slightly behind Moriko and Captain Vitomir as they toured the small city. She agreed with the cept of the pn, which was to be friendly enough to try and learn … well, learn if there is anything to learn, to begin with. The problem is that her only experiences with people from the Trionean Empire were the ones who tried to kill her barely more than a month ago.

  Now, she didn’t know that there was any e, and it certainly made sehat curious people from far away would be ied in their dungeon, and the captain at least seemed like a det person. But it still bothered her deep down, in an utterly irrational way that she couldn’t shake off.

  The three of them eventually stopped for lunch, which is where Ain drew Kazue into the versation. “Everyone seems to be a lot friendlier with you as my escort,” he said to Moriko, “Though it seems your wife is less pleased.” He faced Kazue directly. “Have I offended you?”

  “Huh? Ah, no, sorry.” Kazue took a deep breath. “It’s nothing you did and not your fault. It’s just, well, the only people from the empire I met before also tried to hurt me, and part of my brain won’t let that go. I know it should have nothing to do with you, but I ’t not think about it.” While she’d done her best to not pay attention to the prisoners, she still heard them talking and kheir at, and heard it every time the captain spoke. “I don’t really hold it against you, I’m just dealing with my own stuff.” Kazue gave the man a more sincere smile as she decided to tease Moriko. “Though if it makes you feel better, I’m pretty certain you’d have had a different experieh Moriko when she was single. She does appreciate petent fidence.”

  Moriko blushed slightly, caught off guard by the sudden teasing, and then shrugged with a wry smile. “It’s quite possible. I’d still have turned your man down, he retty enough really but I didn’t like his attitude. You are much more charming. But to be clear, I am very attached to my two loves, and whatever my ‘wild youth’ might have been like I have moved on with my life sihen.”

  “Ah, well, I am sorry to know my trymen have caused you distress, but I am gd that I have not offended. And I sider myself praised by that fttery.” Ain’s face had been somber at first, but he smiled during that st sentence. “And I uand the difference. Some of my men… well,” He shrugged, “They are sometimes poorly educated, and have fanciful notions that do not quite align with the reality. I think it funny that if a certain soldier did not hold to his assumptions, he might find his fantasies more likely to e true, but I do not think he would find it so funny. But it is a learning experience for him.”

  Moriko pursed her lips thoughtfully. “Does he need a direct lesson in humility? I’ve been known to provide those on occasion, and have earned enough of Sakiya’s grace to even heal any bones I break.”

  Ain barked a ugh. “Hah! No, tempting as that is to see, I believe in private punishment, public praise. And I think that would be publiishment.” He shrugged. “Oher hand, if he mao do something stupid before we leave tomorrow, I will not hold a grudge so long as he is fixed afterward. I do not think it likely though. I’m already giving him short rations.”

  Kazue raised an eyebrow. “I thought you guys were on leave.”

  “Yes, we are,” He replied, nodding. “But I have been paying for their food, officers get paid much better after all.” Ain gave an evil grin. “Which means I am not paying for his food for a little bit, and he must pay out of pocket. And so he will be buying as cheap as he , I am sure.”

  Moriko grinned. “Now you sound like my master back at the temple. And I think you would like my husband, given the right opportunity.”

  “And now you have givehe ce to be curious. I admit, I was expeg to meet him when I met up with you two this m.”

  “He’s not in tht now,” Kazue said, uo hold back a slight smile. “But perhaps you will get to meet him iure.”

  Ain looked betweewo of them suspiciously. “I think there is a joke I am not getting.”

  Moriko patted his shoulder. “There is, and I think you will appreciate it when you get it.”

  After lunch, they tihe ‘tour’, though Kazue did notice Moriko skipped over her parent’s shop. As for versation about the dungeon, Moriko described the basics with a bit more fvor ah, and emphasized that the dungeon was very strict when it came to rule-breakers. “Which doesn’t mean that it won’t offer exceptions or anything, but it wants that sort of thing arranged first. Deg on your own to make your own rules, well, then the dungeon no lohinks of you as guests to challeo a game, and instead siders you intruders who are there to hurt it.”

  It felt a little weird for Kazue to hear Moriko calling Mordecai and herself a singur ‘it’, but the terminology fit for being discreet for now.

  Mordecai gave up on making progress in his ring crafting for a few days, another set of visitors had arrived and things were going to be plicated. Li had mao appear right after Mordecai had greeted the group, and was staring at a certain six-tailed kitsune in awe. Perhaps Mordecai should have avoided usiitle.

  “Wow, you’re a real princess? I never met a real princess before I think, but aren’t princesses always running around in disguises to get away from marriages or being kido be forced to marry someone?” Li gasped. “Mordi, did you kidnap her? You already have two wives! Are you going to be in trouble? I don’t think I’d want to be in trouble with them they’re scary like the time that …” his eyes defocused like he was reliving a traumatizing experience, and mumbled something about ‘soft’ before he shook it off.

  “Princess, we have all sorts of pces for you to hide from a bad guy! I bet you could hide real well in the mushroom ki- er, forest. The whole fifth floor is cool and creepy and has all sorts of shadowy lights and there is this cool river that glows wheiny mushrooms float down it and the water snakes and flying snakes and you should see the bunny tribes going to war they are so awesome with the swooping and swishing and g and there’s a really ushroom king guy he doesn’t talk much but he listens really well and seems like a guy and made me these really cool glowy mushrooms for me to find a and he likes to py games with me and Mordi and there’s this really fun slime girl she’s all sorts of awesome with the boung and the way she ge her shape or bee hard and all sorts of ricks she’s super fun to py with and you just gotta try pying with her she make you bounce really high like the bestest trampoline ever!”

  Mordecai wasn’t sure what a trampoline was, and he wasn’t about to ask. And he was going to be quite the awful host: he was going to sacrifice a princess. “Li, that’s a great idea! You should show her around! I bet you show her all the best hiding spots.”

  “Oh yeah I do that and show her where the best honey is and do you like shiny stones cause they have the shiny stones like this really cool one I found the other day it’s kind of like this other one I have but silvery and istead of gold and fire.” The wide-eyed Princess Orchid took the time to shoot Mordecai a gre before she put on her most graceful smile and followed the little ratling, appearing to all the world to be givimost and fasated attention to Li’s ramblings.

  Orchid’s three panions were doing their best not to ugh, but Paltira also looked torn with worry. Mordecai smiled at him. “She’ll be firuly, but if you feel the need, you follow them. Well, I have no problem with y to follow them at least, I ’t trol whether or not you’ll actually be able to, since all his attention is focused on her.”

  Paltira hesitated, then shook his head with a sigh. “No, I know I worry too much. It is probably best I do not.”

  The oran apanying them cpped a hand on his shoulder. “Hah, I knew you were a wise man. I always liked you sihe day we met you, though I am sorry she put you through the wringer first. Now, introdus. You have got to be Mordecai. I am Kansif, former bodyguard and babysitter for her Royal Highhere, and cousin to your ambassador or whatever it is they said Bellona is going to be here. Any ce she’s shown up yet? No? Eh, not surprising,” Kansif grinned broadly, “And this is hirious, the little flower there is as smart as she thinks she is, but it’s o see her thrown off banow and again. Now, you got a pce where Xarlug and Paltira grab a drink or something? Since her Highness is occupied, I fill you in oails of our visit. And then maybe I have a drink too.”

  Mordecai exged forearm csps with the woman. “I believe I arrange something. Ah, I know,” He smiled wickedly, “I think you two might enjoy this particur elixir. If either of you finish a whole bottle without going unscious, I’ll give you a prize. And it’s a prize each if you both ma.” He poi Paltira. “And no spells. Your fortitude and training only.” The monk and the tiefling both looked skeptical, but then Mordecai pressed metal bottles stoppered with gold into their hands. “You keep the bottles and the gold win or lose, but the elixir has to be drunk here and the opal is too expeo be handing out as loot just yet.”

  All three of them stared at the pair of bottles, but Kansif broke the silence first. “Ah, I take on that challenge as well?”

  Xarlug groaned. “Give me a break dy, we already know you drink all three of us uhe table.” He sounded disgruntled over that fact, but Paltira just looked amused.

  “I was thinking after you caught me up oails of your visit.” Mordecai replied as a pair of bunkins arrived to escort Paltira and Xarlug to the nearby tavern ‘outside’ of the dungeon.

  Kansif hen tilted her head, “Wait, you didn’t have those before, and your avatar is out here,” She narrowed her eyes as she started to formute a question, but Mordecai interrupted her with a grin.

  “Yes, but I’m trusting you based on my trust of Orchid and the rest of the . I have a guess as to why you are here, so it’s something you’ll o know anyway.”

  She gruhen shrugged. “Well then, short version is that we get to all be your bodyguards for a bit. At the least until my cousis here, maybe loook a bit for the higher-ups to decide to send us, we knew you had some help for now but it’s also best to not rely on divine providence, yeah?” She shook her head, “And they are still w oing a story out of that lot you handed over to try and figure out how big the threat is, but that sort of thing takes time,” Kansif grinned. “Well, not the way I would like to do it with some of these people, but maybe that’s why my cousin is a Champion while I’m just a knight. She’s han me.”

  “Just a knight?” Mordecai asked, “I believe I heard you were a Marked as well.”

  Kansif scratched the back of her head as she ughed. “Yeah, trained with some shifters. Turns out that a wolf’s nose and a cat’s eyes are real useful for trag down stray princesses te at night.” She chuckled, “It also gives me an edge over even Paltira there when it es to drinking. I’m as strong as an ice bear, sturdy as a moose, and as stubborn as a dire wolverine.”

  That would expin her aura, and it gave Mordecai a starting pce to see if he could puzzle out exactly how this whole Marked thing worked. “Well, why don’t I give you a ce to show those two boys up then? We discuss future pns ter, and I don’t think we are in immediate danger.” And he had a few quick-sober remedies prepared if it came to that, alchemy was a useful art. “Oh, Moriko and Kazue’s avatar aren’t hht now, so you’ll only be directly talking to me, but Kazue’s core still hear you as mine, and both of us alass a message through the bunkin if I’m not avaible.”

  Once he had her settled with Paltira and Xarlug, Mordecai got to split his attentioween trying to keep track of Li and Orchid, puzzling out the information that Moriko was getting from the captain, and helping Kazue make sure everything was running smoothly through the rest of the dungeon. Even with two cores and an avatar brain, there was a lot to process and think about.

  “Um, Mordecai? Are there really magic mushrooms that make someone a giant that jump over castles?” Kazue asked in fusion.

  Zagaroth