Chapter 86: Cute A.F.

"Great work today everyone." Gates said as the group gathered in a corner of the Mystic Chapel lobby. All members of the expedition finally made it back to the chapel, some were relieved and others agitated. Some even promptly made their way to the receptionist's desk in order to cancel their temporary membership to the chapel.

Of the six adventurers only two were upset at how things turned out and both for different reasons. Merri felt that she hadn't gotten a proper chance to showcase her abilities as a Tower Guard while her friend Ariadna, the Trickster, was dreading the inevitable conversation with Merri.

*I know it. She's going to sign up for the next expedition, ugh!* Ariadna thought as she cast her gaze downward.

"You know, there's something I've been wondering for quite a while now… how did that slime get so big?" Katrin asked. Now that Agni thought about it, she never really considered as much. That was when Sypha smiled sheepishly as he placed his hand behind his head.

"That's sort of my fault." The Light Weaver said as he began to explain.

"My class magic revolves around the use of light to heal and support myself and others. I can also use it in a limited capacity to defend myself if need be. I tried using some attack magic on the slimes, because I figured they were too small to stand up to it. Unfortunately, there was an adverse reaction. The slimes started bonding together...and they wouldn't stop. Eventually one huge slime appeared and...well you know how the rest of the story goes…"

"What? That's crazy! So all of those creatures formed together because you used light magic on them? Grimlock are ...scary indeed." Agni replied as she thought to herself.

"Yes. It was troublesome to say the least." Gates responded as he tapped his hands against a holographic display floating just centimeters in front of him.

[The Alliance has been disbanded by the party leader.]

This was the alert the group received as Gates finished up.

"That was a hectic day to say the least." He said with a sigh, prompting Sypha to agree with a silent nod.

"So we're free to go then?" Ariadna asked, mostly to sound sociable. She already knew her answer but despite her misgivings as a generally standoffish person, she had managed to bond with the members of this group to a degree.

"Of course. Of, before I forget. Visit the receptionist for your rewards. The CP has been automatically applied, but to use them and acquire your Gols you'll need to consult one of them." Gates explained.

"Yea. I definitely need some new clothes…." Sypha remarked, which once more called everyone's attention to their lack of attire.

"Y-yea, definitely." Gates responded as he once more struggled to keep his eye level at a reasonable fixing.

"Well! Is there anything else I can help you ladies with? If not, we'll excuse ourselves." Gates asked, and the ladies responded with nods so both he and Sypha excused themselves after saying their goodbyes.

Surprisingly for Agni and Katrin, Ariadna and Merri lingered for a few more moments.

"So, are you two planning to stay at the chapel?" Merri asked first as she turned her attention to the two adventurers before her.

"I don't know. We haven't really thought about it. What do you think, Katrin?" Agni asked as she cast a glance at her party leader.

"I suppose. I mean we haven't really explored any other options." Katrin said as she thought things over.

"Well, you can probably come and visit with us sometime. I mean, if you want." Ariadna said.

"We stay here in the chapel as well after all. " She added.

"Really? How does that work? Is there a nightly fee or something?" Agni asked.

"Walk with us to our room, I'm starting to feel a bit...exposed.." Ariadna said as she motioned for the pair to follow both her and Merri. Agni took a look around and indeed noticed that many people were now staring at them, she had no doubt it was due to their lack of clothing but it didn't bother her much at all. The other ladies however…. Their expression was one of mild embarrassment.

*Shula?* Agni called to her familiar as they walked , partially out of curiosity but as Shula suggested earlier in the day she simply couldn't be contacted within the chapel.

*I'll have to ask Vivan about that.* Agni thought to herself as the group of young women finally made it to Merri and Ariadna's room. The room itself was rather spacious but it was set up bunk-style with enough room for four people if they desired.

The moment the door closed both Merri and Ariadna tossed their cloaks to the side and began to move to their prospective corners of the room. Agni was so unused to seeing women toss their clothes aside, even after having been privy to it for several days now. On reflex she averted her eyes, but her succubus urges quickly called upon her to indulge upon the bodies before her.

Ariadna's long black hair was eye-catching due to the long purple streak along its length. Agni couldn't help but watch as she stretched, pulling a rather long T-shirt up and over her perky B-cup breasts.

*Her nipples are so pretty…* Agni thought as she took in the sight of Ariadna's pale, yet fair skin.

Merri on the other hand was, in one word fit. Her build reminded Agni of a body builder in some aspects. Her arms, particularly her biceps were bulging. Her abdomen and thighs were also well defined. Her c-cups seemed firm due to the muscle content of her chest. Perhaps the strangest thought Agni held was her fascination with Merri's horns and tail.

*I-I want to touch them.. Is this fetish?* Agni thought as she recalled having the same thought with Vivian.

*M-maybe it's because I haven't met that many people with tails...other than me." She thought to herself.

*Mine only brings me grief…* Even now her tail was twitching, had Agni not taken to coiling it around her own waist she had no doubt it would be caressing Katrin even now. Merri also wore a t-shirt several sizes too large for her. Neither woman bothered to wear panties and instead turned to face their company who simply watched.

"Oh. Do you not have spare clothes to wear?" Ariadna asked, suddenly realizing that Agni and Katrin were watching them dress.

"No. We haven't really been shopping yet." Katrin responded with a pleasant smile.

"Whatttttttttttttt?" Ariadna said in disbelief.

"Are you...one of those kind of women?" She then asked.

"Those kind? What do you mean?" Katrin asked.

"You know.. Some people who are women now used to be men." Ariadna responded, much to Agni's surprise.

*Guilty!* She thought to herself.

Merri nodded ferociously before adding, "Only someone who's never been a woman before would forget to go shopping for the necessities."

*So….they aren't like, upset ...they just think it's weird we haven't gone shopping?* Agni could admit their line of thinking was somewhat foreign to her. As a man shopping for clothes made her balls itch. She wondered how she would feel about it now, especially given the fact that she was having all kinds of thoughts.

Cute things. Adorable things. The irresistible urge to fluff, touch or caress anything which made her heart quiver. This was an urge Agni had been struggling to suppress, violently at times. She realized it was irrational, after all she was no longer a man. Something in her past life made her extremely adverse to anything which could be labeled as "kawaii".

Now that she thought back on it, the root of the complex came from the fact that women always used to call her "cute" instead of "sexy". Something as simple as that was enough back then to make her hate teddy bears, ugly yet cute dogs and pretty much anything else associated with the four letter word.

Yet, as she stood before the two scantily clad women there was one urge overriding the appeal of lust….

*Their shirts are so cute.* Agni practically clenched her fist as she relented to the thought forming in her head. Even as these thoughts raced through her mind Katrin just smiled and laughed. She was the only person who knew Agni's secret and Agni was fairly sure Katrin would never say anything. Katrin simply winked at Agni and explained that the pair had spent the prior two weeks training relentlessly under the instruction of their previous mentor, Bracha.

"Ah! That explains it! There's no way two zero rankers would be so good at combat!" Ariadna said. She and Merri had made themselves comfortable on the bottom bed of their respective bunks and also pulled up chairs for Agni and Katrin to sit. Through their conversation Agni occasionally caught a glimpse between their thighs, which in turn made her heat rise as well.

"Agni, are you okay? You look a little flush." Merri said suddenly. Her bronze skin was a beautiful contrast to her blonde and brunette hair.

"Yes! I'm fine. Don't worry about me. I just get a little hot sometimes. Ahem." She offered up, at which point Katrin giggled. The other two ladies in the room looked at each other, wondering if they'd missed something but Agni offered up little enlightenment so ultimately they continued chatting about various things.

Agni's initial impression of Ariadna was someone who was a loner. Dark, brooding, female-batman, these were a few adjectives or phrases Agni might have used to describe her at the outset. But, after spending some additional time with the Trickster both in battle and now personally she realized that Ariadna was simply a watcher. She preferred to scope people out before choosing whether or not to open up.

*I can't really fault that mindset.* Agni thought as she sipped on some purple juice the pair of hostesses produced at some point. Merri on the other hand, Agni couldn't figure out. At times she seemed confident and at others apprehensive. Her body didn't match her personality, because Merri struck Agni as the most feminine of all women in the room.

After about two hours of talk about their collective experiences in Adventia, Merri asked the question that had been lingering within her mind for quite some time.

"Would you two party with Ariadna and I? We'd really like to get some practical experience handling Grimlock. Maybe you could take us to the Lull Forest sometime?"

"Sure. That would be great!" Katrin replied almost immediately. Agni had no problem with this, so she nodded in agreement as well.

"R-really? Thank you so much!" Merri said gleefully. It was as if a great weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Ariadna couldn't help but smile for she realized that this must have been on Merri's mind for quite some time now.

The four young women talked for a few more hours until the late afternoon before Katrin and Agni got to their feet.

"I just remembered, I need to speak to the Doyenne." Agni said as thoughts of Shula entered her mind.

"Wait. You two haven't been shopping yet, right?" Merri said as she suddenly got to her feet and went to her dresser. She pulled out two of the same long T-shirts she was now wearing, each with a different animal design on the front. She handed Katrin a "kero" shirt and Agni a "kuma" shirt. Katrin responded with a "thank you", promising to return the shirt at the earliest convenience. Agni on the other hand stared down at the pink and grey striped shirt with a brown bear's cute face embroidered on the front.

A small part of her wanted to fiercely toss the shirt, but a larger part forced the cloth to her bosom as she relented to the storm raging in her heart.

*Ah. I give up. It's cute as fuck.*