It has been two weeks after they arrived at their new lodging, and what initially was believed to be a house, turned into a fortress, an invisible fortress concealed in the woods, Valentine had set traps...
Lots of traps intended to destroy the lives of every single creature that dared to do so much as to intend to ambush Teddi and Miki.
He had built a small hill made of timber and rocks coated with the fur of beasts with soil above to conceal the smell of the creatures within, resembling a small cottage.
That way, not only would their presence be concealed from the predators, they'd also have a wall of protection with spikes, it's amazingly prepared with the intent of drawing out blood.
The bears didn't have an idea of the degree of protection they now had, they only cared about food, but Fayette and Vera were quite appreciative of his gesture, however, wasn't the only trap he had set.
Spikes, big holes he dug together with Miki, gigantic rocks hanging from the trees to squash invaders, ropes to pull them up, arrows that released themselves at the briefest touch, poisonous plants coating the exterior of the building together with spikes... you name it.
Whoever dared to step near this place, poor him/her/it.
There was a small wall made of soil in the perimeter, the spiking head of animals and goblins intended to deter anything that dared approach, and the girls confirmed... it's ominous.
Valentine fell on top of his girls' bodies, utterly tired, Warcroft said that tomorrow they have to meet with one of his underlings for the briefing of the mission.
Both of his girls hugged him tightly, they hadn't been idle either, transforming the original house into a floating palace in the woods thanks to Vera's power.
This is their 'little' HQ and centre of operations.
"Did you have to go that far? how many traps did you set up?" Fayette caressed his hair while Vera kissed his cheeks, he had worked too hard.
"Yes."
He doesn't even know how many he made himself, those traps are mostly laid on the ground with an underground trench for Teddi and Miki to leave the perimeter without having to touch them.
Upon hearing his answer, the two of them smiled while he raised up slowly and started to trail kisses up Fayette's chest.
"Why?" She moaned slightly, feeling that he was getting a little fun out of the sudden while Vera giggled.
"I don't want anyone to take this peace away from me, if anyone dares approach, it will perish."
"W-Wait before we go further, how are we going to do tomorrow?" She pushed him slightly, aware that once they begin, they won't finish until the next morning only to hurriedly wake up like a jobhunter going to an interview.
"This is going to be our first mission..." Vera said with some apprehension, not knowing what to expect, they truly didn't have to follow on with what that demon said, but it's better than actually rejecting the orders of a Marques, let alone, the status that's being offered to them, she knows very well that it's extremely useful.
It's not something they can afford to lose as the intention of remaining in these woods permanently never crossed their mind.
"Yes, we're going to be alright, having done harsher stuff through our journey, so long as we can accurately plan for what's to happen, we will be okay." He assured them a fondled Fayette's breast through her bra, a little harshly... so much work got him in the mood.
"Hmn~ b-but, don't you think he might be planning something beneath the surface?"
"He surely is, but we have no way to tell, we don't know why Lucretia is after us, why Sasha was after us... why Warcroft is after us... it seems a little far-fetched to think that it is just because my soul is golden... our yours, but we can only go on and start to learn from this netherworld as much as we can, it's an extensive world, the first thing we need is a map and a briefing of the political situation, if he's sending us to slaughter someone or to rob someone, that means there are parties with interests involved." The one to speak all of this was surprisingly Vera, it popped a smile out of Valentine and Fayette, it means that she's highly conscious of the situation they're at.
"Your ability is something that will come extremely handy... I already have some ideas myself."
He had been desiring to get stronger, not because he was weak, but because he can no longer rely on his agility and intelligence alone to survive.
The thought of one day losing these ladies and this life is eerie and he will do anything to become stronger and prevent it.
And the first step to that, are those Blood Maidens.
He hasn't mentioned this to the girls, but thinking about those blood maidens and about Vera's ability, he couldn't help but think whether he could somehow benefit himself from this situation, what if he can obtain a mutation as Vera did?
'If I can find the core of this 'curse' then perhaps... they could give me some odd ability to get an edge.'
There are so many use cases for Vera's ability that he can't even count them.
"Tomorrow we're waking up earlier and waiting for that demon in the same place, there is no oddity about what's to happen, he or she will come, give us the mission and we're going to survey our options to accomplish it after it's done, we come back here to live our lives and that's all..." With nothing more to say, he placed one of his hands on Vera's plump chest while sinking his lips deep against Fayette.
He can't have enough of their bodies.
**
**
"I love this pool you guys made for me~" Vera jumped on the empty casket to the corner of the house, there was a complex mechanism with several hollow trees stems that went all the way out of the house, connecting each other with some sort of goo made with plants.
Fayette had thought this through from the beginning.
"I did." Before Valentine could ever dare to claim ownership, Fayette growled, those two didn't believe in her vision, but she had accomplished it.
She had successfully produced a mechanism that would extract water out of the lake and bring it to them in here, it was revolutionary, at least for the pair... for her, those were like gimmicks from cavemen.
"Yeah, yeah you did, since you did it... how about you pedal~" Valentine once again mocked his pseudo-wife, her arrogance would one day be her doom, he embraced Vera inside of the tub.
"Dammit."
Fayette, as the engineer, had the responsibility to check that her creation worked up well, the confidence she had plenty... the naked beauty got on the 'bycicle' and started to pedal, thinking about what could she do to make this seat more comfortable for her big butt.
Her movements slanted the gaze from the pair, her breasts wiggled, still sweaty and they gulped and evaded the sight of her tempting body, they can't get horny now, there is a meeting soon.
Fayette chuckled and turned her movements even more brazen as a form of vengeance.
Her pedals incited the start of a rotor that worked with strings, producing a fire after several clashed together in sparks, lighting up the sollux that was prepared beforehand.
The fire upon touching the logs would get rid of the air inside the steems that were connected with a goo made out of plants and soil, producing a vacuum that pulled the water out of the lakes in a steady form, it wouldn't only be pulled out from the lake, it would also heat up along the way.
Eventually falling in the pool... it had to be changed often, as it would naturally get dirty from usage.
She had to pedal for a total of thirty minutes in which Valentine and Vera switched several times, they had already run a trial, doing it manually would take at least forty minutes with the three of them together to fill up the pool, and the water wouldn't be hot... hence, the method worked and Fayette got her fair share of kisses and praise.
"This is life." The trio lay on the edge of the pool inside their own house with several small candles that burned wood particles and plants, they couldn't believe this is hell if not for the red sky and the two moons shining above with yellow hues.
"I love this, can't we stay like forever?" Vera released a sigh, feeling the water nurturing her skin and tree-self.
Fayette said no word, she just lay against Valentine with her head on his shoulder, feeling like they could sleep for yet another day.
"I'll make sure that we can stay like this, forever..." He said confidently, never feeling like there was anything he couldn't accomplish, especially now that he feels happier and fulfilled than when he was back on the earth.
Kissing both of their foreheads, he thought about his 'previous' life, living a life for the sake of vengeance, destroying his own happiness for the sake of a mirage delusion, slaughtering his father.
In the end, he didn't obtain his well-deserved vengeance, he didn't slaughter his father, forsook his relationship with Rose and ended up here, but perhaps... everything would have turned for the worse otherwise.
Had he gone to the heavens, he wouldn't have met these two ladies, it has been harsh and painful, but it has been worth it.
**
**
Valentine dried their bodies after they finished scrubbing each other, there is no such thing as grass, just leaves.
They wore their usual combat attires, they were cleaned and tide up, props to Vera for doing the laundry, even if they're in hell, basic customs shouldn't be postponed.
"Let's go..."
Wearing their cloaks and weapons, they scurred beneath the tree back to the small hill where Teddi and Miki were, in order to come out of where without triggering traps, they had to go through a small underground tunnel that Vera assisted caving with her roots, he had thought everything through, this is not a house, this is a fortress