Episode 12: The Hero's Exam Student
Before drifting off to sleep, we burned with passion as we laid down our rules — rules we would keep for the demon king subjugation ahead, and for our adventures beyond it.
First.
Neither of us shall expose our bodies to the other.
This was the top priority. Of course, as long as no resonance occurred, I was confident I could face Valerie without feeling a shred of desire.
Obviously! I'm a man! A heterosexual! Sure, futanari are... technically women, but they're different, okay?
Anyway, the details of this first rule were settled verbally. To keep our bodies covered as much as possible around each other, we agreed to give fair warning before either of us headed off to shower or use the privy. All three of our incidents so far had started with exposure, after all, so we resolved to be extra careful.
Second.
Avoid conversation topics that might stoke our desires.
If Valerie's lust ever resonated with me and sent me spiraling out of control like it had earlier, it would be utter chaos. So to nip those thoughts in the bud entirely, we decided to watch what we talked about.
This included keeping careful guard over our own thoughts as well. We agreed to steer clear, as much as humanly possible, of any imaginings or memories of that nature.
Though judging by everything that had happened so far, Valerie seemed perfectly capable of working herself up through thoughts alone, which did worry me. I resolved to keep an even closer eye on her so she wouldn't slip into that kind of thinking.
Third.
Build a sense of camaraderie.
After establishing the first two rules, it felt awkward to make a rule that dealt directly with lust, so this one was born out of that hesitation.
I figured that building our relationship as comrades, fellow travelers, and friends would not only help on our adventures, but also indirectly reduce how much we desired each other.
At first, Valerie waved it off, insisting she was most comfortable in a subordinate's position, but after a little persuasion on my part, she agreed to give it a try.
Fourth.
Focus on our individual goals.
This was another rule meant to help manage the thoughts covered under the second rule.
Valerie would devote herself to helping as many people as possible, while I would concentrate on capturing the Demon King.
Unlike the first two rules, which had rolled off our tongues with ease, we hit a bit of a wall with the third and fourth. But determined not to let the mood sink, I kept the conversation going with enthusiasm, shouting "Fighting!" at every pause. Valerie found it awkward at first, but she warmed to it so quickly that before long she was the one cheering first.
With our rules settled, we were each climbing into our own beds to sleep when I realized I wasn't wearing any pants at all.
So I just gave that whole solemn speech, right down to the passionate pep talk, like this... No! Think positive! The fact that I went through all that half-naked without any resonance means Valerie didn't feel a flicker of desire the entire time! That's a hopeful sign our rules are actually going to hold!
I asked Valerie to pick up a spare set of bottoms for me while she did the laundry, and the very next morning, before I'd even woken up, she came back with underwear and trousers in hand.
Seeing her face glow with pride made me happy too. Especially the part about there being no resonance.
The trousers Valerie bought me were long leather ones, quite different from my old shorts. A choice that fit Rule One: Neither of us shall expose our bodies to the other to a T.
The moment we finished getting ready and stepped out of our room, an inn employee was waiting for us as if on cue, handing us off to the guild receptionist — which meant yet another free meal.
This time we tried to pay, with our own money — or to be precise, Valerie's money — but when word came that the guildmaster would soon return to deliver the lord's orders, we conceded.
"Hero, did you not get to see the Goddess again?"
Valerie asked, dunking her corn bread into her tomato stew.
"No. Last night I had so many things I wanted to ask her, but... she never showed up."
"That's a shame. You don't even know what kind of goddess she is yet, after all."
I'd hoped to meet the Goddess in my dreams, but last night I'd slept like a log, too deep for any dream to find me.
Lying in bed with Valerie the night before, talking about the Goddess, I'd realized just how many questions were piling up.
Information about this world, about the Demon King, about anything that might help me bring him down. No one in existence would know those things better than the Goddess. Valerie added that she wanted to know what manner of goddess she was, too — since while there were many religions in the world, heading to a place whose faith worshipped this Goddess could hardly work against us.
I wanted to know too — what that mouth-fleshy-bone of a goddess was even playing at... If there were actual devotees worshipping a goddess like that... I felt sorry for them already.
"Oh, and by the way, when I went out to the shopping district this morning to buy your clothes, Hero, I saw quite a few fine pieces of equipment! Leather alone won't keep you safe, so how would you feel about outfitting yourself properly there, when the chance arises?"
"Oh, sounds good. Hmm... though I've never trained with a sword or a bow, so I honestly have no idea what equipment would suit me."
"I'd suggest starting with armor and taking it from there. There are plenty of pieces that are light and comfortable, so worry not!"
"Great. Oh, by the way, in the world I come from there's a funny joke about armor. The surface area of the cloth—"
I clapped a hand over my mouth right there.
"What's the matter?"
"N-nothing! Wow~ this tomato stew is delicious!"
That was close! I nearly said, 'There's this joke that the smaller the cloth's surface area, the higher your defense. Hya-ha-ha-ha!' Rule Two: Avoid conversation topics that might stoke our desires. Topics like how much cloth something covers are absolutely off the table!!
Having smoothed that over, we finished our meal chatting about armor and weapons. Around the time lunch was drawing near, word reached the reception room where we sat: the guildmaster had returned to the village entrance.
A short while later, footsteps even heavier than Valerie's armor rang out, the door swung open, and the guildmaster walked in.
"Oh! Sorry to keep you waiting!"
She was a towering woman who looked every bit of two meters tall. Clad in jet-black armor that made her enormous frame look even bigger, she wore no helmet — probably because of her head.
Curly hair that looked soft enough to pet, and sprouting from either side of it, what could only be called ox horns.
Is this the Horned Tribe Valerie mentioned? She said they were strong and skilled with ores and metals, so I'd assumed they'd be like dwarves! Why is she so freakishly tall?!
Faced with something entirely outside my expectations, I tensed right up. The guildmaster, after asking the receptionist for tea, strode over and took the seat across from us.
"Ahh, I would've liked to see you off properly before you left, but I figured the news couldn't wait. If I wanted a quick meeting with the lord, I had to go myself."
She said this leaning slightly forward. A wide mouth, thick eyebrows, and scars scattered across her face. Beautiful, certainly, but with the strong, intimidating features of a woman who'd clawed her way to the top.
"Still, it's good to meet you like this, ladies. Who knew the Hero's party would be such pretty little things? If you weren't the Hero's companions, I'd haul you straight off to bed. Ke-ha-ha-ha-ha!"
The guildmaster roared with laughter as she said it.
"How dare you! Saying such things about the Hero!"
Valerie slapped her own knee, seething.
"Ah, my apologies. I was only joking to lighten the mood."
That's not a joke, that's straight-up middle-aged-office-worker sexual harassment from decades ago...
Somehow, the guildmaster's breezy manner actually put me at ease.
"And the Hero here is a man, you know!"
"Huh? Really?"
At Valerie's declaration, the guildmaster blinked in mild surprise, then looked me over with one corner of her mouth curling up. She quickly smoothed her expression away and cleared her throat.
"Ahem. Where are my manners. I am Amajie Sontar, guildmaster of the Sontar Guild."
Her name has the town's name in it?
"I am Valerie Gius, a wandering knight. And this is the Hero."
"What? I already apologized for the jokes. But refusing to give me your name — isn't that a bit cold?"
"Th-that's..."
Valerie faltered at the guildmaster's words. No point overcomplicating it. I'd just come out and say it.
"I don't have a name."
"Huh? Really? I suppose that's why they call him a figure of legend — so mysterious. Ke-ha-ha-ha!"
The guildmaster threw her head back and bellowed with laughter. If anything, I found it more remarkable that she didn't press the matter further and simply laughed it off.
When the tea arrived moments later, she took a sip and opened her mouth again.
"First, allow me to relay the results of my meeting with the lord."
This was what the guildmaster conveyed:
While her certification as guildmaster carried weight, legally speaking I would need to prove my identity as the Hero directly to the lord before a report could be filed to the Royal Capital. Once the lord himself certified me, the report would go up to the capital, and I — together with the Holy Sword held in this territory — would make my way there as well.
"Geeeeeze. Why can't we just head straight there? What's with all this prove-this, certify-that, piling on the busywork?"
The guildmaster grumbled it out flatly.
"In any case, that's how it is, so you'll be heading to the castle where the lord resides. A carriage goes without saying, and if there's anything you need, just say the word. The guild will support you as generously as our discretion allows."
At Valerie's lead, we requested additional supplies and equipment, and the guildmaster joked that she'd been worried we might ask for gold bars instead, laughing heartily as she said it.
She then offered to accompany us to the shopping district and handle the purchasing herself, suggesting we move whatever luggage needed to go on the carriage over to the guild ahead of time. When she offered to send guild staff to fetch our things from our room, we turned her down, insisting on carrying them ourselves.
And so, leaving the guildmaster waiting out front of the inn, we climbed the stairs toward our room.
"Her manner of speech is a touch rude, but she seems to view us favorably, so my heart is softened."
"Well, we got the food and the lodging for free, and now she's throwing in extra supplies on top. We can afford to laugh off a little crudeness, haha."
Saying this, I strode ahead down the corridor and pushed open the door to our room. And inside—
Someone with a masked face stood frozen, one foot propped up on the chest of drawers beside the window. They'd been about to slip out the window, but stopped the instant our eyes met.
A form-fitting black outfit clung to their whole body, laying bare the contours of a woman's chest and hips. Through the eye-holes of the mask I could see dark skin and a few strands of golden hair peeking loose. But there was no time to dwell on any of that — because of the object clutched in her hand.
It was my underwear. Freshly laundered, and left folded in the room.
"PANTY THIEEEEEEF!"