TRC - Lord of the Glass Desert Ch. 34

"I am," Kal admitted. "But not enough to actually try it. After sailing on The Scarlet Bitch I'm happy with only needing to worry about you and Hattori."

Ichiro perked up at the name. "You traveled here on the monster girl's ship?"

"I suppose I shouldn't be surprised the son of Soma's second house would know about The Scarlet Bitch. Yes, at least, most of the way." Kal immediately cursed himself for the tidbit of unnecessary information he let slip as Ichiro's eyes widened for a fraction of a moment.

The brother stepped in close to Kal so the surrounding crowd couldn't hear. "Before we left, there were rumors the captain of The Scarlet Bitch was now commanding two other ships, both former slaving ships and one of which is sitting outside Soma's harbor training monster girls to be sailors. Apparently, the ships have experienced a change in ownership and were left in Captain Scarlet's care. Perhaps you could tell me a little more about the situation."

"What's going on?" Yua asked, looking worriedly between the men, but Kashka held up a hand to quiet her.

Kal returned Ichiro's smirk with an even stare and said, "Commandant Scarlet."

Ichiro looked confused. "What?"

"Scarlet commands multiple ships now. That makes her a commandant, not a captain. The Scarlet Bitch has a new captain now, but Scarlet is still using it as her flagship. There. Now you know a little more about the situation."

Ichiro returned Kal's stare for a moment before bursting into laughter. "Well played, mage. Well played. I think we will be coming back to this topic later, but now it's about time for my brother's fights. Shall we go find him?"

---

Asahi's fights lacked the drama of Ichiro's as the man turned into a veritable whirlwind that stormed through opponent after opponent, leaving a wake of men clutching, heads, hands, and stomachs. The other two winners were not chosen so much by their skill as they were the two men Asahi didn't get to.

The display was undeniably impressive but worried Kal more than a little since Ichiro considered Nao nearly as skilled with a blade as their middle brother.

After Asahi's fights, the second of which went nearly the same as the first. They retreated to the monster girl camp for a soak in Dioga's healing slime and some lunch. Asahi remarked that it would be nice to take their time and relax since the next rounds would be the human women's matches and they didn't have anyone to watch. On the way back, they ran across a couple of food vendors who had set up shop at the edge of the camp. Kal picked a sandwich filled with roasted pork and veggies served in a mushroom and green onion infused flatbread, while Kashka chose a rice roll wrapped in roasted seaweed and stuffed with raw fish.

When they arrived at the tent, the men got an assortment of catcalls from the monster girls already in Zakku's tub as they undressed and climbed in. Zakku provided small shelves on the edge of the tub where they could set their food, but Ichiro and Asahi's when unused as they immediately wolfed their sandwiches down.

Ichiro's reason for eating so quickly became apparent as he pulled Yua onto his lap. The groan of relief from both of them as she reached between her legs and slowly lowered herself left little question why.

Asahi had a similar idea and kept looking over the camp, hoping to spot his gecko lover from earlier. After a few minutes with no sign of her, he accepted the advances of a very fluffy tan and white dog-girl.

A ladybug-woman sitting beside Kal sneakily reached through the slime for the mage's cock but was stopped as the goo hardened around her wrist. Dioga shook her head and the woman pouted for a moment before reluctantly pulling her hand back. Kal and Kashka finished their lunch and excused themselves before crawling out of the tub. The mage used a cantrip to float their clothes in front of them as they went into the tent.

"What are the symbols on his back?" Ichiro asked Dioga.

"Runes," the slime replied. "The middle one is a healing spell, but I don't know what the other two are."

"The leather arm-guards he wears have more runes like that embedded in them," said Asahi. "It must be western magic because I don't recognize any of them."

"You aren't a mage, brother."

"No, but I know enough about magic to recognize spells. If that's the arsenal he keeps on his person, I hate to think what else he can cast. Nao will be in for a tough time if they end up facing off against each other."

"It's more interesting than that, Asahi. He healed me after my first fight but never cast a spell."

"What do you mean?"

"He just touched me and healed me. He neither drew nor formed a spell beforehand."

"You two sound like you're plotting something," said Yua stopping her hips' rocking motion.

"Just trying to learn a little more about our new friend."

"Does this have to do with you getting in his face earlier? What was all that about?" she asked. Out the corner of her eye, she saw Ichiro's brother straighten slightly as he listened intently.

"Sailors have loose lips when their drink flows freely," Ichiro began. "Some of the stories we heard before setting out from Soma make me think he might be the new owner of a slaving fleet."

Yua scowled. "Slavers took one of my childhood friends. I learned to fight because I swore I would never let that happen again. I've fought Slavers many times since. Kal isn't a slaver any more than you are."

"You're correct. It sounds like he's turning the slaving ships into merchant ships and training monster girls to crew them."

"IF, it's him," said Asahi.

"'A westerner with a monster girl companion who had business inland' how many other western faces have you seen here, brother?"

"I hadn't heard that much before we left. It explains your interest in him."

"When a slaving ship anchors in our waters and starts taking on monster girls as crew, not product, I can't help but be curious."

"But how? I understand he's a mage, but how could he manage something like stealing an entire fleet of slaving ships?"

"I didn't steal anything," said Kal, stepping out of the tent with Kashka. Both were still naked. Kal's cock glistened in the sunlight while the cat walked gingerly behind him but wore a contented look on her face. The mage, however, looked annoyed. "I made a deal with the former owner. His holdings for his life. He accepted," he said as they climbed back into Zakku's tub. Kashka noticeably winced as she slowly rested her weight on the bench seats in the tub.

"Need some help, Kashka?" Dioga asked.

"Probably. I shouldn't have offered my rear after so much teasing today. But it felt so good while we were doing it."

"I told you we should have taken it a little slower," grumbled Kal.

"Back to the topic," said Ichiro while trying hard to ignore that Yua just asked the slime to help stretch her own bottom. "What happened to the previous owner?"

"He's dead."

"You don't seem like the type to go back on your word."

"I didn't. I spared his life, but never said I would protect him. There were plenty of people standing around us who also wanted him dead." He leaned back and faced the tent, then called out, "Ria!"

A few seconds later, the sprite flitted out the door and over to the tub. "Oh, this looks like fun," she said, leering at all the naked bodies.

"Darrow's robe, please," he asked. A few seconds later, a mote of light turned into a red and gold robe in his outstretched hand. "I took this from him moments before he died. Specifically, she did," he said, pointing at Ria.

"And I can only store things that belong to him or Kashka or Perra or--"

"That's enough, Ria," Kal warned.

"Or Ikuno," Ichiro finished for her.

"Dammit all to hell," the mage sighed. "How?"

"It's the only name that's been mentioned my brother or I might care about, and I already know you and her have a history. I'm guessing it's more intimate and involved than just helping your mother conceive."

"Does this mean this whole tournament is pointless?" asked Yua.

"Not for you and the human women," said Kashka, "If you win, you will be joining Kal and I with Ikuno. As for the men, Ikuno won't take any man besides Kal."

"It's not entirely pointless," said Asahi. "Winning still comes with prestige, and besides," he smirked at Kal, "I have had male lovers."

"Sorry, not interested."

"That's fair. But regardless, I'm still going to try to win. It can only help our house's name."

Kal looked around at everyone and said, "If word got out about what you just heard, it could end this tournament in just a few hours. Please keep what you learned to yourselves, don't even tell any other monster girls."

"I won't tell, but I would like a reward for my silence," said the grabby ladybug from earlier with a glance at Kal's crotch.

"I think I can fit you in sometime in the next couple of days."

"I want a reward too," said Yua. "But I'm going to take it right..." she lifted up and tilted her hips forward, "now," she said, the word turning into a long moan as she sank down on Ichiro again.

"You'll be the death of me, woman," the eldest brother groaned through gritted teeth as the pika's tight rear spread open and slowly swallowed his cock in its tight confines.

---

There were significantly less spectators for the monster girl's fights, and Kal immediately noted there were few women and no children in the crowd. The reason became apparent as Yua approached the inspection station.

"Since most of us do not wear any clothes, clothing is optional in monster girl fights," she said, stripping off her top and shorts, leaving only the wraps around her arms and legs like Ichiro's with an added wrap around her breasts.

"Why not at least keep the top?" Kal asked.

"Less for an opponent to grab on to."

"Of course," he said, realizing Ichiro had given a nearly identical reason earlier for not wearing a shirt.

Yua, Asahi's gecko friend, the panda woman, and the tan dog-girl all progressed to the next round, while the deer-girl and the ladybug did not.

In the first set of duels, Yua faced off against a red raccoon-woman which Ichiro explained was actually a red panda. During the battle, they got the first glimpse of what the pika meant by being quick. The red panda was a fairly skilled fighter but simply could not keep up with Yua's speed. The panda's blocks and dodges always came a fraction of a second too late to be effective, and while Yua didn't hit exceptionally hard, she eventually wore down her opponent until the red panda stepped back and slipped the armband off.

The pika walked over and gave her opponent a big hug and congratulated her on an excellent fight before the judge came over and declared Yua the winner.

Once the monster girl fights were over, it was time for everyone to move to the far side of the monster girl camp for the magic-user duels.

Kal thought he would be fighting against magic users, mages, clerics and the such. He quickly learned this was just a catch-all for those who fought with something magic-related.

His first opponent turned out to be a perfect example.

The man stared gleefully at Kal as the mage entered the ring with his staff. While curious about what might make the man so happy, Kal knew he needed to be cautious when facing someone wielding magic.

The announcer started the match, and the man grinned wide as she flipped the hood of his cloak up and vanished. Against most other adversaries this might have been a winning strategy, but Kal's eyes stripped away his advantage. The mage held his staff defensively in front of him while pretending to scan the fighting arena. Curiously, Kal realized he didn't even need his magic-seeing eyes to track the man. As this was the ring's first use, the grass had yet to be trampled flat, and Kal could see the impression of his opponent's boots each time he took a step.

Kal's foe crept past him, likely wanting to attack from behind. Kal couldn't take the chance his opponent might damage the runes on his back and ended the charade. Stepping sideways, Kal spun his staff and swung at the invisible man. Not expecting to be attacked, his opponent didn't even attempt to duck or dodge before the wooden shaft connected with the side of his head.

Bending down, Kal pulled the hood back, making the man visible again. The mage's staff had left a nasty, bleeding gash on the side of his opponent's head, and the man's eyes fluttered as he fought to remain conscious.

The judge came over and removed the man's armband as Kal placed a hand on his shoulder and began healing him. A priest following steps behind the judge joined Kal's healing efforts. After only a few seconds, the bleeding stopped, and the man's eyes focused on the world around him.

Kal smiled at him, "Against almost anyone else, you might have won, but not against me."

"How?" the man groaned, sitting up holding his head.

"You can be as invisible and silent as death, but it won't help if your feet make imprints in the grass."

The man glanced back along his path and saw the slowly vanishing footprints in the grass. The man laughed as Kal stood and walked out of the ring. Since magic was allowed in these fights, the tournament organizers saw no need for the inspection process.

Finding Kashka wasn't an issue. Kashka, Nao's older brothers, and a few handfuls of brave or well-protected onlookers stayed up near the fighting arenas. The spectators mostly stayed far back and watched the magic matches from afar just in case of any stray spells. Instead of magic windows above each ring, there was instead a line of them a safe distance away. Seeing the efficiency and forethought put into this portion of the event made Kal realize that the mages and organizers were a troupe experienced and specialized in running tournaments like this one.

The cat wasn't even looking in his direction but instead watched Nao's fight. What she saw had mildly impressed her, but at the same time it failed to worry the cat when matching the brother's skill against Kal's.

"Ichiro and Asahi have painted their youngest brother as a trickster," said Kal as he joined the cat. "Don't assume this is his best."

"I don't, any more than I assume that was yours," she said, pointing over her shoulder at Kal's ring. "He's making rookie mistakes, but never bad enough that his opponent can capitalize on them. If Ichiro thinks he's nearly as good with a sword as Asahi, then he's holding back, a lot."

"Annoying for me, but smart on his part," said Kal.

Nao's adversary spotted an opening and dove forward with one of his two short swords. Nao stepped to the side, letting the blade slip past his guard while twisting, so it passed below his arm. The brother grabbed his opponent's forearm, and the man screamed as arcs of electricity danced up his arm from Nao's hand. The man dropped to his knees, his swords falling to the ground as he clutched his steaming and burnt arm. Nao placed a boot on the man's chest and shoved him onto his back before sheathing his sword and striding out of the ring.

"Congratulations, brother, but our weapons master would be disappointed," said Ichiro.

"The man was trash. He deserved to be on the ground," Nao sneered.

"You could have easily defeated him without burning his arm like that," said Asahi. "You still lack control."

"Maybe if you fought better, we wouldn't have had to sit around waiting for you to finish," Kashka called out. "Kal has been done with his fight for the past few minutes."

Nao looked over at them and snarled before stomping off.

"What are you doing?" Kal asked her.

"Your victory is assured. This is just for fun."

The mage looked at the man whose arm was being attended to by a couple of priests and couldn't muster up the same confidence.