For the remainder of his stay in Yamatai, he didn't dare leave the room except for the barest of times. Noah could feel the itch of fur tickling at his skin at random times, but he didn't know whether it was actually from presence in the room, stray bits of that he'd missed upon firstly cleaning everything, or his own mind playing tricks on him.
As though his progress had been shattered by that single interaction with… Yao, it was most likely to have been though he didn't know how many underlings Tamamo had, he felt himself regress into familiar habits.
On the first day, he ran through his entire inventory of explosives to make sure they were still functional- of the three flashbangs, two grenades, and two incendiaries he had, a flashbang had somehow gone off without anyone noticing when he first cast Mega Fire and was unsalvageable, while the incendiary's handle was jammed- which prompted Salamander to question if he was clinically insane to bring a bag full of those in her volcano.
At the time, his muttered reply of "The jury's still out on that one" seemed pretty funny to him, but if the glance Salamander shot him was anything to go by, it probably wasn't.
On the second day, he snuck out in the wee hours of the morning, armed with food and water and with just barely enough light that he couldn't be easily ambushed but still very few people out and about, and retraced his steps back to the ship. Thankfully, everyone else seemed to be of a different idea, wishing to enjoy themselves on land as much as they could before they had to set sail again.
He practiced swordsmanship with Salamander. Little words were spoken beyond instructions on her part and he explained the movements that he was familiar with in HEMA. One relevant conversation stuck in his mind at the end of his demonstration, however;
"Hmmm... it's a decent base, and it definitely served you well on the ship, but I don't think it's going to work out for you going forward." Salamander commented.
"How come? It seemed pretty effective, you've said so yourself," he asked, raising his sword back to the Zornhut position as an excuse to rest it on his shoulder.
"Well, for one, this reeks of Elvenswordsmanship." Salamander began. "And let me assure you, it's a type I'm most familiar with. But more specifically, this is High Elf Swordsmanship, and it's fallen out of use a long time ago for a reason." Noah made a questioning noise at that. "This type of swordsmanship was typically used in two main types of scenarios, fairly similar; dueling against humanoid opponents who do not make use of flight or magic, and fights against a multitude of humanoid assailants weaker than the user."
Noah groaned. "That checks out. Figures that HEMA wouldn't be as useful, since it was mostly human on human and based on the user wearing full plate armor..."
"What's so historical about this type of martial art?" Salamander asked, curiously, having picked up from his thoughts the meaning of the acronym."If your home doesn't see many monsters as you claim, it seems fairly relevant still."
"Well, mostly that we've moved on to using gunpowder weapons against each other. That makes swords obsolete."
"Like your grenades?"
"Yes."
"Hmmm... I suppose that if they're able to do some damage to the weaker kind of monsters, then they're perfectly suited for killing other humans... so much for the peaceful culture you spoke of."
After that, she had him work on mostly dodging and waiting for occasions to strike. Apparently, it was uncommon for monsters to actually have fighting training, so this would serve him better than trying to win a slugfest of blows with a monster. Getting the first blood, apparently, wasn't as useful as it would be against a human- if anything, ending the fight in a single decisive blow would be the better outcome since many monsters didn't fight to kill unless threatened.
He spent the third day splayed out on the beach, gathering and releasing magic, letting himself be lulled by the waves. He couldn't really be bothered to train that day, and his muscles were too sore to do so, He just wanted to be alone. He couldn't really even muster up the desire to practice magic. What was the point? He didn't have the capacity for it. Even with Salamander's help, he couldn't do enough to seriously injure human civilians. Most of the work in the fight belowdeck had been done by his swordsmanship and the deafening boom throwing off everyone's sense of balance.
Salamander kept looking worriedly at him, but said nothing. Idly, he kept massaging his leg at random intervals where the pain would seemingly flare up for no reason. There didn't appear to be anything wrong with it, and yet, pained it was. A dull ache that wouldn't inhibit his ability to move or do things, just remind him of its existence. Of what happened.
Apparently, his spells were still mostly for show, rather than being seriously able to turn the tide of a fight. Most ironically, his healing and buffing capabilities were good for something on the other hand, which was the class of magic he hadn't even been seriously considering. Maybe he should turn to clericdom. Apparently, he had some sort of holy blessing.
Day four saw him idle away the morning, singing mournfully the songs he'd loved back home. Given the type of fantasy world he'd gotten stuck in, one particular song had come to mind, and with its lyrics, open came the floodgates of his memories. Far too long it had been since he had seen his family; surely, they thought him dead by now.
How would his brothers deal with mom? Only he had gotten down how to properly care for her, and with his disappearance... could they pick up the slack? Could they even manage to make enough money to care for her, without his help?
Caring for a woman with Alzheimer's was so much more difficult than anyone could imagine. Especially when said woman was still more than spry enough to just disappear at a moment's notice.
His mother had been so young when she had Noah, too young. It'd left her damaged, in body and mind alike. And yet, she'd gone on to take on two more adoptive sons, and never once she'd complained. Let it be known that Erica Romero's brain had given up on its own before she ever did.
He sang his heart out on borrowed words. He'd never been an artist in the musical sense, his favored medium was visual, but still...
"...moon reminds me of your grace,
all the love I can't repay,
rest and know that I will pray,
farewell my dear old friend.
"Moon... Sun... All remind me of your grace,
Faith... Care... All the love I can't repay,
Moon... Sun... All remind me of your grace,
Faith... Care... All the love I can't repay.
"Dance upon the stars tonight,
Smile and pain will fade away..."
As he settled back down, feeling hollow as he tucked his chin on his knees, he sighed. He felt that he was forgetting how this song actually ended, that didn't feel right. Perhaps he was forgetting a verse or something. He felt exhausted both physically and mentally from days ago. Sleep wasn't coming in well these days.
Still, he was definitely caught off guard when shortly after the end of his performance, he was met with applause. And not from a single pair of hands either- it was a roaring applause that had him jump into the air in surprise. Had the crew made their way back while he didn't notice?
As he whirled around, however, his pupils shrunk in fear. There was a single creature there on the beach. A young, naked girl with hair a burgundy color not particularly different from Promestein's, her lower half was instead that of a crab, with several legs and two giant pincers as big as she was. For every crab leg she had, above it but still sticking out of her shell were human arms, energetically clapping. She stood maybe eight feet tall while standing up.
Between the confusion at the action, his lack of sleep, and the embarrassment at being caught singing, his brain short-circuited for long enough that he didn't draw his sword.
"That was such a good song! So melancholic, uwaaa~" The crab girl sighed dreamily, several of her arms, including her main ones, clasping together.
Were Noah a few months into the future, perhaps he could attribute the current paralysis going through his body to the Crab Beam ability this girl would eventually go on to develop. As it was, however, he only had his brain's capacity to blame.
"It's been a while since I've heard songs that didn't have how hot mermaids are as their main topic." she continued on, unknowing of Noah's internal plight. "And I mean, they're fine you know? But when it's all that is ever sung... anyways, you have a very pretty voice for a guy!"
"...thank you?" he cautiously offered, replying automatically as he tried to make sense of what was going on right now.
The crab girl's main set of hands rose to hold her head in her hands. "Honestly, I want to give you a reward... for you, I'd make the wash extra special..." she smiled sultrily.
Alarm bells were going off in Noah's head. "I- no need?"
"I insist." her smile widened as she began stepping closer. Immediately, his brain went to everything he could think of about the upcoming fight. She wasn't a high-level opponent, so he could reasonably struggle out of being grabbed, her arms and human side were obvious weak points, she couldn't seem to walk forward or backward and instead was walking sideways towards him. If he slipped a grenade inside her bubble hole, he could probably do some major damage-
'What the hell are you doing?' Salamander asked as he rose, exasperated. 'She's not attacking you. At best, she's being a bit forward, but it's not like you refused- at most, your reply sounded either coy or modest. If you're seriously that upset at the idea, just refuse.'
Salamander's words were enough to stay his hand, though he'd still grasped a grenade on his belt. As the crab girl reached him, she raised a claw, and he tensed, only for it to simply weave around him and gently slide him closer to her, kind of like if someone put an arm around his shoulder. Uncomfortable, but not hostile. "So, what do you say? My bubbles are really nice~" she lowered herself to his level, looking at him in the eyes with a smile as her mouth began foaming and a finger gently caressing his chest.
"I... I don't really want to have sex right now, especially with someone I've just met..." he stammered. The urge to fight and defend himself, the need to hate his opponent thundered burned in his chest like he was a furnace. Begging to be given a reason to be let loose.
She simply laughed. "Oh, that's fine! I'm way more into hand stuff anyway. And as I said, this is my way to reward such a good singer." she reached over and cupped his face with a hand. "It's not often a human makes me feel all tingly inside."
The blonde remained petrified for a moment. He didn't know what to do, because he felt like he was making no progress turning her down, but he also didn't feel provoked enough to start a fight... and then, Salamander spoke up again in his head.
"I mean, why not?" His brain froze again. "She wants it, you're a young man with a lot of pent-up aggression and haven't had a positive encounter with a monster in ages, it could be good for you."
'But-' he thought, but she interrupted him.
"But what? Do you honestly think, right now, that she would harm you after you give her what you both want?" she huffed. "If she threatens to do you any harm because I convinced you to give her a chance, your power is more than enough to destroy her."
Noah didn't know what to feel. At all. The situation was unwarranted and sudden, and more than a little scary.
"Hey?" The crab girl pulled his face closer to hers, smushing his cheeks together with her hands as she inspected him. "You okay there? I don't need to get you a healer or something, do I? You look pale."
"I'm fine." he brushed her off automatically, and she simply raised an eyebrow at him.
But did he feel threatened? Not right now. But...
He shook his head. A non-aggressive approach, and he was seriously considering going to bed with a crab. "I'm sorry, but I must decline. However, there are plenty of my fellow sailors in a village just a hour or two away from here over there. I'm sure they'd be happy to take my place."
With that, he wiggled himself out of the grip of the Crab Girl, ignoring the noise of disappointment she produced. "Hmmm... and I would've made it really special too..." she grumbled. "I guess I'll try my luck over where you said. I'm Soapy, by the way- if we ever meet again, I'll make sure to give you a thorough wash! Bye!" she waved curtly, and soon, she was scuttling away.
"She didn't really wait to hear my name back..." he mumbled, before shuddering. What the hell was he thinking?
"She has your scent now, rest assured that that's more than enough identification. Still... huh. I was sure for a moment there that you were going to go for it. I'm a bit disappointed. Thought you might get some headstart on your bias against monsters."
"I'd like to remind you that so far, my bias has been completely justified..." he murmured acridly. "Still, I didn't refuse because she's a monster. I'm just not a manwhore who sleeps with anyone because they offer. I like to know a person beforehand."
Salamander snorted in reply. "Adorable. The offer was for a handjob at best. Granted, with the amount of hands, it would've been a very enthusiastic one, but still..."
As his mind thought of the implications, his cheeks gained a fairly red tinge of blush. Like a pouncing tigress, she stepped close to him with a grin. "He can be made to be horny after all! Never thought I'd see the day."
With an annoyed huff, he smacked his arm toward her, picturing that it'd just go through since she existed only inside his head. Instead, she caught the arm as it smacked into her chest, raising an eyebrow at him. "Weird way to go about touching a girl's chest," she smirked, holding his arm and preventing him from pulling it back.
His eyes widened. "Since when can you grab me? I thought you were only inside my head?!" he pulled, but Salamander's strength didn't allow him. His blush deepened.
"That's very reductive. Besides, I'm pretty sure I've touched you before. I've definitely smacked you yesterday." she raised an eyebrow.
"One thing is feeling you poke or smack me, another is being physically tethered to what others think is thin air!" he replied, feeling alarmed. She simply hummed, pulling him close as he yelped.
"I guess that's true. I should probably not make a habit of this, even now, I can feel the drain on my mana. Still... given how things ended the other day, and how unsatisfied that encounter with the Crab Girl left you, and given how dreadful the silence has been the past few days, I've been feeling neglected."
An animalistic part of Noah's brain was pulling him... trouble was, it was in two very different directions. One was thinking of the fact that a monster, one that was on fucking fire had him tight to her and wouldn't let go, even if the flames weren't hurting him.
The other was thinking of how attractive Salamander looked right now, with her sparkling eyes and radiantly blushing cheeks. Seeing the struggle on his face, the sultry look on Salamander's face eased up slightly. "Hey." she whispered in his ear. "You take the first step. If you don't want this," her grip on him eased up, to the point that the only reason she still held him was that he had stopped struggling to get out of it," then we can drop it. Still..." Her face pulled back from behind his ear, looking at him straight in the eyes. He could see her blushing face, burning red eyes filled with desire, and her hot breath on his face."You've been upset at me recently. How about we kiss and make up?"
Transfixed, and at war with himself, his mind raced as the arms that had been in Salamander's hold slipped out, and for a moment, he was unsure of what to do with himself. Slowly, his arms wrapped around her shapely figure, leaning in as he felt the warmth of her body, flames receding to allow his touch.
...he shouldn't. She wasn't a good person. She could and would keep slaves given the chance.
Placing a hand around her neck and another around her hips, he leaned in as for a moment, he simply studied the sensation in his hands. While her figure was lithe, to the touch Salamander may as well have been a brick wall, muscular beyond compare and soft in only the right places.
She was also someone he'd been relying on. Someone who would have helped him, because she saw someone in need. She could've killed him, overpowered him- hell, when Granberia knocked him out, it was Salamander's own honor that kept her from doing anything. On the ship, she'd granted him her power, guided him through the fight.
Right now, she was the only person Noah could rely on. Once she was with him, she'd always kept her loyalty, never once wavering. And after yesterday, he so badly yearned for comfort.
He wondered how soft her lips were.
Salamander's voice dripped into his ears like warm honey. "You don't need to just wonder." And with that, his hesitation yielded its agonizing, lost battle to her flames. They kissed, and Noah could feel himself melt in her embrace. One kiss turned to many as she pounced on him like a ravenous dragon, and yet her lips were as soft and warm as a welcoming bed on a winter night. As they fell onto the soft, sandy beach, far from where the waves could reach them, he could feel the tingle of the spirit's lips against his own as he parted.
She sat on his chest, an ecstatic grin on her face as her barely fangs poked out as she licked her lips. "Not bad... but now you've left me yearning for more. A real man doesn't get done in by the opening act. Wanna show me what you're made of?" A tiny, unwanted voice in his mind told him to take heed of the danger, since she was a monster and could subdue him at any moment.
"...I guess I should repay you for smacking me around recently." he replied, making her snort out a peal of flame and laughter, as he showed this primordial spirit just how much of a "real man" he was.
...welp. Here it is. I already know that this chapter is going to alienate some of the viewers who wanted Noah to be fully against monsterkind, but I've been hoping to add a bit more complexity to Noah's behavior, while still having him an appealing protagonist.
As for the sex... well, as implied. It's a hurt/comfort story. This wasn't even Noah being assaulted by a monster sexually- though as you all can see, he still has his very large issues with that. This is about him coming to face with godlike powers in a frightening manner.
Is this going to be the official start of Noah and Salamander's relationship?
I wouldn't say that. There's a very clear divide between the two of them, remaining bonded but neither trusting the other.
Still. If monster girl sex having occurred at all is a turn-off in the story for you... well, I, uh. Why are you reading, it's a monster fucker game .
On the place of patrons, there is my first attempt at ever writing a sex scene. Next month, it comes out (together with the next chapter) for free, but this site doesn't let me post smut, so I'm forced to redirect you guys to the other major fanfiction site, AOoO.
Thank you for whoever decides to stick around especially both monster fucker and monster puncher alike ❤️
If you wish to support my writing, you can check me out on the place of patrons where I post five chapters ahead. Alternatively, you can always PM me in private if you wish to commission something written where we can hash out the details. Otherwise, a review is still more than enough, and I can't be thankful enough for it.
I now also have a Discord Server! If you want to come talk to me about anything and interact with other people reading my works, here's the link! /xuSVQY7bw3
Drink water, stay awesome. Nick of Name, out. :)