“Nnnngh...” Krvavy tiredly groans, consciousness slowly returning as she begins to wake up. Swirls of steam caress her skin and scales, rising from the pool of faintly glowing water that she is lying halfway in. Solid stone presses into her back. She really needs to stop sleeping down here in the hot springs...

  Moving her head, even just slightly, causes an uncomfortable aching pain to shoot through her neck and body. It isn’t particurly intense or anywhere near unbearable, but... it isn’t pleasant either. How can she still be so sore after spending hours upon hours soaking in magically rejuvenating water...?

  A part of her wants to continue lying here... to let her thoughts fade away as she falls back into a deep slumber... But that, unfortunately, won’t be happening. She is a bit too stiff and sore to rex like that. So she just has to accept that she is awake.

  But... she can’t quite get up just yet either.

  There is a weight pressing down atop her body. Warm and... reassuring. Her heartbeat quickens slightly as her hand idly trails up a pleasantly toned back, fingers brushing over the bumps and ridges of a spine.

  Krvavy’s eyes flutter open, taking in the sight of the still sleeping Orc cuddling so closely with her. Khalia’s head is squished into her bare breasts, basically in the pale valley of her cleavage, dribbling a thin trickle of drool past her plump lips and cute little tusks. The Greenskin woman looks... surprisingly adorable. So peaceful... calm...

  Khalia murmurs slightly in her sleep, shifting a little as the Drakling’s hand makes its way up to her head, fingers gliding through her damp hair.

  Curiosity wells up within Krvavy. As does a bit of anxiety. She softly bites her bottom lip and shoots off an Inspect.

  Which doesn’t exactly help her feel any less concerned.

  Sure, this is undeniably an improvement to what the poor Orc was like before, but... that’s comparing a barely living sb of meat to what appears to be an animal.

  And that isn’t even an exaggeration.

  This Orc has four skills. Just four. And Inspect isn’t even one of them. The very few that remain are... rather basic. Primal and primitive. The kind of skills that a feral animal would be expected to have. Maybe that is all Beryl’s literal Beast Magic could bring out? If that is the case... then hopefully the rest of her skills – the ones that she would have had before Krvavy broke her in the first pce – are just locked away in her mind and aren’t permanently lost...

  But that, unfortunately, isn’t where Krvavy’s concerns end. The Orc’s stats are also fairly worrying. Just not nearly to the same degree as before. Most of the negative red numbers have disappeared, and the ones that remain aren’t as severe as they used to be, but... those mental stats aren’t very good at all. This Orc has one point of Rationality, for fucks sake! Is that even enough to be capable of conscious thought?!

  Krvavy takes a long, deep breath and tries to rex. Her fingers uncurl, releasing the fistful of bck-brown hair that she had rather firmly grabbed onto. Her chest, and the sleeping Orc still ying on it, sinks back down as she very slowly exhales.

  That doesn’t do much to calm her down.

  Even the name in the top left corner of this stat sheet is something to worry over. Because Khalia isn’t this Orc’s actual name. It is just the one that Beryl came up with, on the spot, and gave her. Then there is that title, precious puppy, that honestly just feels like it is mocking Krvavy. Not to mention that css.

  Hound.

  The barbarian doesn’t know how important csses are or aren’t, so maybe the fact that Khalia even has one at all is a good sign? Krvavy just can’t see it that way though. Not with how it doesn’t seem like a css that a person should have.

  But at least Khalia’s health and stamina have increased, going up by more than double the amount they were before... So it isn’t all bad. Though, saying that, her mana seems to have actually gone down, for some reason...

  What about the traits? Most of those don’t seem bad, at least not at a gnce. And it is even kind of interesting how some of them are the same as what Beryl has. Well, Consuming Love being there is kind of obvious, but Khalia having the same Endurance and Toughness stat milestone traits as the Elf is what catches her attention. Is that just a coincidence? Did some part of Beryl rub off on the Orc? Or are the milestone traits that give a smaller percentage bonus just more common?

  Might Matters I: Increases Might by 7.5% and strengthens the effect it has on Damage dealt. Associated attribute = Might.

  That is predictably simple, but it also raises some questions. Because that is the highest percentage bonus Krvavy has seen from the first tier of these milestone traits. And, thinking about it, Krvavy might know why. It doesn’t change how health is calcuted, like her Might milestone trait does, so it is clearly a more damage focused variant.

  Mindbroken: Whether intentionally or not, this person has had their mind utterly shattered. With effort they may be able to relearn how to function on their own, but they will never again be who they once were.

  Krvavy’s heart sinks, eyes trailing over that description again just to make sure she read it right.

  She honestly didn’t have much hope for restoring this Orc back to whatever and whoever she was before the barbarian... broke her. Hence why Krvavy was even willing to use the colr in the first pce. But... There is a difference between thinking that she can’t do something and knowing for certain that she can’t.

  Whoever Khalia used to be is as good as dead. She is never coming back.

  Orcish Rage: These savage Greenskins are capable of withstanding a great amount of pain when in a rage, increasing their resistances in proportion to their anger.

  Krvavy is already in a bit of a sour mood. And reading this st trait just annoys her even more. Not because of what it does, but because of how it works. It specifies anger. It would have been nice if her own Drakling Rage could be so specific...! But no, she has to lose control when she is horny as well as when she’s angry...!

  The barbarian grinds her teeth together and dismisses all of those popups.

  This is far from the fix that Krvavy had dared to hope for.

  But... it is still better than before. She shouldn’t be ungrateful. Beryl’s magic may not have been enough, but the Elf still tried her best. This Greenskin woman would still be comatose if not for her help.

  Krvavy slowly exhales. Despite the discomfort and soreness that still fills her body... she just wants to close her eyes and go back to sleep. But that is easier said than done. There are too many thoughts racing around in her head. And... and something is pinging at the edge of her perception. A single notification.

  +5 Divine Favour, for mending Khalia’s mind. But is that all can be done for her?

  That... Krvavy isn’t the happiest with how all of this has turned out, so how come she got five points for it...? She only got a single one for coming back to life... But at least it hints that Khalia can get better eventually, somehow, someday. That gives Krvavy a bit of hope. Though not much, admittedly. Who knows how long it’ll be until she truly gets to fix Khalia?

  But still, five points is more than Krvavy expected, so she can’t compin about that. She isn’t going to spend them just yet though. That feels like a pretty big decision to make and Krvavy isn’t exactly in the mood for any sort of thinking right now.

  Rrrrrggmmmggghhhngh...

  It takes the barbarian a few long seconds to realize that the rumbling noise that she both heard and felt was her stomach grumbling. The aching pain of hunger had kind of blended in with the rest of the dull pain she has been forced to suffer, but now that she has noticed it... Krvavy is absolutely starving.

  Guess she really does have to get up now...

  With Khalia’s sleeping form held in her arms, Krvavy approaches the living area. She has no idea how long she slept, or even how long she was fucking the Orc, but the grotto is filled with daylight now.

  “I do not believe you in the slightest! That is just ridiculous!” Thea’s voice calls out through the air before she even comes into view.

  “Ach, ‘ow so?” Beryl blithely replies, infuriating the bratty noble girl.

  “You expect me to believe that beast cut down dozens of men before suddenly deciding that she couldn’t handle any more?!” Thea incredulously scoffs. “And she oh so conveniently lost everything she had in the process?! Hah! I doubt it!”

  “What’s going on here?” Krvavy asks, stepping up to the piled bedding. She should really straighten it out a bit first... but her hands are a bit full right now... maybe if she used her feet to kick or drag some corners out...?

  “Oh, my dearest love! Ah was just telling this impudent brat about wha’ ya got up ta while out adventurin’, as she wouldn’t stop botherin’ me about it.” Beryl quickly answers. A pyfully teasing gleam fills her eyes as she raises a hand up to hide her mouth from the girl in question, before letting her voice drop to an exaggerated stage whisper. “She was worried sick about ya~!”

  “I WAS NOT!” The bratty noble whines and pouts.

  Beryl just smiles nicely, maliciously meeting that girl’s gaze as she gestures to Krvavy, who is in the process of gently pcing her Orc down onto the vaguely straightened bedding. “Ya see? No scars.”

  Thea just scoffs and rolls her eyes, crossing her arms over her chest.

  “What exactly were you telling her?” Krvavy questions her tomboyish Elf.

  “Just ‘ow ya valiantly fought a caravan full o’ loot, sying dozens o’ pathetic Human guards before yer axe broke and ya decided ta take what ya could and run off. Which just so ‘appened ta be a powerful healin’ potion. Hence why yer scars are gone.” Beryl helpfully expins, smiling and looking quite proud of herself. “O’ course, the journey back was a bit rough as ya ‘ad to shake any followers off yer tail, so it took ya a while ta make it ‘ome.”

  It seems like her Elf came up with a cover story for Krvavy. And it isn’t actually that bad either.

  But... “That isn’t exactly how it happened.” Krvavy says. She doesn’t want to be too dishonest with Thea.

  “I KNEW IT!” The bratty noble cheers. “So what actually happened?!”

  “Well, for one there were only seven men. Five of which were pretty easy to deal with, though I was only able to kill three before having to flee.”

  “Hah! That sounds pathetic!” Thea mockingly ughs out. “And yo–Oww!”

  “Let ‘er finish talking!” Beryl forcibly reprimands the bratty girl, after having spped her across the back of the head.

  “The problem was that the other two men were rather strong, and I didn’t even get the chance to really fight them.” Krvavy admits with a shrug. She considers leaving it there, but something in her mind clicks and she suddenly remembers a certain little detail. “In fact, I think you may know one of them. The other called him... Dovoryn. Isn’t that the name of the Duke Tarantino guy that you are engaged to?”

  Thea narrows her eyes and purses her lips, gring angrily at Krvavy. “Do not mock me! There is no way you met Duke Dovoryn Terenti out there! Especially with such a small retinue of guards!”

  “Greying hair, trimmed beard with a moustache, wears some sort of fancy bck suit with a silver sash across it?” Krvavy begins to list off. “He was with an old guy with a bushy white beard, who wore a bck robe with an odd hat, had a silver capped cane, and did annoying lightning magic?”

  Thea’s eyes widen in shock. “You... you are not just messing with me, are you? Are you being serious?! What is my betrothed doing out here!? Is he looking for me!? Am I finally going to be rescued!?”

  Considering that she met the man about a week ago... “Probably not.” Krvavy honestly replies, causing Thea to scowl at her. “I didn’t exactly stop to talk, but he did ask if I saw any bandits led by a man with a ‘powerful crossbow’. You know, like the ones that kidnapped you.”

  “So he is looking for me!” Thea cheers.

  “No, no, I really don’t think he is.” A bit of regret makes its way into Krvavy’s voice as she meets the girl’s gaze. She... probably shouldn’t have even mentioned this... She doesn’t want to crush Thea’s spirit. But it is a bit te now... “See, he was pretty pissed when I told him that they were gone, and he mentioned something about having a deal with them. Maybe he was going to ‘buy’ you back, but...”

  The bratty noble girl immediately narrows her eyes, gring furiously at Krvavy. After a few moments, her expression softens. “Do... do you think he was behind my kidnapping?” She asks.

  “I don’t know.” Krvavy honestly answers. “But he didn’t ask me at all about a pretty blonde girl. Just if I had come across any bandits. Which says something about his priorities.”

  Thea tiredly sighs, but instead of responding she just dismissively shakes her head.

  “You don’t seem surprised.” Krvavy comments as neutrally as she can.

  “I... I am not.” The noble girl bnkly states. “The Duke... He has a reputation as a ruthless man. I would not put something like this past him. Perhaps he believed he could gain some leverage from my kidnapping, to threaten my father with my disappearance or gain goodwill by rescuing me. Or... or maybe he hoped to cow me. Much like you have been trying to do.”

  “At least you don’t have to marry a man like that, right?” Krvavy tries to cheer the girl up. Her attempt is a bit hollow though.

  “My family likely believe me to be dead.”

  “Ach, no need ta dwell on all o’ tha’!” Beryl interjects, clearly trying to change the topic. “Ya were wonderin’ about all tha’ noise earlier, and ‘ere’s the answer! Khalia is all better! Though she does seem a bit kipped out right now...”

  “Well...” Krvavy bites the inside of her cheek, finding herself idly stroking her Orcs hair. “I’m not sure if better is quite right. Her head is a bit messed up. She seems to think that she is a dog.”

  “Ya think so, my dearest love?” Beryl questions.

  “You heard all that howling, and–”

  “Are you sure that is not just how Orcs act?” Thea interjects in a slightly derisive tone, cutting Krvavy off. She is surprisingly nonchant about the fact that her fiancé may very well be the reason she is in this situation. Sure, she had no love for the man, but... this bratty girl is typically a bit votile. So is she not mad...?

  “No, I am very confident that her mind is–”

  “arwoo...?” Khalia stretches and makes a decided dog-like sound as she wakes up.

  “See?” The Drakling dryly says as her Orc sits up. “That is not a normal Orc noise. No matter what you say.”

  Khalia tiredly blinks her eyes before staring intensely at Thea, quickly unnerving the noble girl.

  “What is she looking at me like that for? I do not like it.” Thea coldly and cautiously compins, inching back slightly. “Now go away, you savage!”

  The noble girl’s bratty voice causes Khalia’s head to lean to the side. Confusion flits across the Orc’s face... only to be repced by a sudden look of realization. Before any of them can react, Khalia throws herself at the silver-blonde haired girl.

  “AAHHH! GET IT OFF! GET IT OFF!” Thea screams as Khalia pins her to the ground, sloppily licking all across the bratty noble’s face.

  “Oh~? Ah think she likes ya~!” Beryl openly ughs at that sight. “How cute~!”

  “GET THIS! AAH! DISGUSTING! UGH! THING OFF! NOOO! GET OFF OF ME!”

  “Khalia, come here!” Krvavy tries ordering the Orc... who doesn’t understand the nguage or know her own name.

  With that predictably failing, the barbarian resists the urge to sigh and instead loudly cps her hands together, catching the Orcs attention. Khalia pulls back just enough from Thea to look back at Krvavy, though she still has the noble girl’s struggling body pinned beneath her.

  Krvavy shakes her head and invitingly pats her thigh, hoping that Khalia will at least be able to understand that the barbarian wants her to come over. And, much to Thea’s relief, that works quite well. Perhaps too well, as the Greenskin woman barrels over and crashes into Krvavy.

  Khalia excitedly shakes while pressing herself against the barbarian’s side, trying desperately to lick Krvavy in the face but being unable to on account of the hand firmly gripping her hair.

  “GROSS FREAK!” Thea shouts as she shakily rises to her feet, trembling with impotent rage. “I...! UGH! Greenskin savage! Cur! Disgusting dog! Broken bitch!” The noble brat continues to furiously swear and hurl insults as she hastily retreats down to the hot springs, wiping her saliva-soaked face all the while.

  Krvavy does nothing to stop the girl, too busy trying to get Khalia under control.