Ten lampreys melted out of the mist with open maws and scything claws.
I closed my eyes and called forth the acid power I’d forged inside myself. It flowed out through the new channels that ran along my skin in every direction. I allowed it to flow through the Smothering Mist pathway and forced its direction along Untamed Torch. I figured I’d create some kind of steam cloud, but when I opened my eyes, a green-colored fog had formed around my attackers.
Well, that made sense. Maybe not by chemistry standards, but my new element was acid, not steam.
The skin of the lampreys started to burn and blister as my technique rolled over them. They screamed and flailed at their own bodies. Some jumped into the water in an attempt to wash the acid off, while others just ran into the marshes as fast as they could go.
I dispelled the cloud and felt a triumphant bolt of success hit me.
“That’s incredible,” Kumi whispered. “I see why you were willing to risk the pain for that. It’s truly a weapon worthy of a skilled Augmenter.”
“Never thought of you as one for flattery, Princess,” I teased.
“Hush,” she huffed, unable to hide a smile behind her hand.
“Although it’s kind of a twisted attack,” I said. “I’m not sure I’d use it on anything that’s not a monster.”
“Fair. But one day, you might have to. Will you be ready, Swordslinger?”
I shrugged. “If the time comes when I need to broil someone alive with a cloud of acid, then I’ll consider it.”
Kumi frowned at me, and she clearly didn’t know what to make of me. I smiled at her, took her hand, and we walked on through the moonlight until we reached the edge of the city. The guards let us past the gates with looks of huge relief.
I had assumed that we would head straight for the palace, but Kumi had other ideas. She led me down two side streets until we came to the back door of a grand, stone building. She retrieved a key from a hiding place in the wall and let us in.
“It’s a bathhouse,” the princess explained. “It’s not open at the moment, but it’s built on a hot spring, so the water will still be warm. I thought it would be a good way to relax after our journey.” She wrinkled her nose. “And you smell of sweat and burnt clothes.”
Kumi locked the door behind us, then led me through an antechamber into the main room of the baths. Pools of water steamed and filled the air with heady clouds of herb-scented perfume. The princess stopped at the edge of the nearest pool , dipped her toe into it, and smiled.
“Perfect,” she said. “Undress, Ethan.”
I laughed. “You know, you keep saying that I’m full of surprises. But you’re just the same.”
“You’re not shy, are you?” Kumi asked me with a giggle. “You’ve already seen me naked. If it makes you feel better, I’ll go first.”
She unfastened her top and revealed the naked fullness of her breasts and the near-black disks of her nipples. Her eyes fixed on mine as she slid off her skirt and cast it aside to stand naked at the edge of the water. She turned her side to me, and her ass rounded out from her substantial thighs.
“Well?” she said as she slid into the pool. “Aren’t you going to join me?”
With an offer like that, how could I refuse?
I kicked off my sandals, unfastened my belt, and shed my robes, tunic, and trousers. I removed a towel from a hanger, dipped it in a wash basin, and scrubbed the mud from my arms and legs.
“What’s taking you so long?” Kumi asked from within the pool.
“I don’t want to get the water all muddy,” I said as I threw the towel down and walked over to Kumi.
Her dark complexion glistened from perspiration, but her body from the collarbone down was mostly hidden beneath the steaming water.
I sat fully naked on the edge of the pool as the warm water lapped around my legs. I slid in and sighed as my whole body felt immediate relief.
“Isn’t it exquisite?” Kumi said, standing close to me.
“Truly wonderful.”
Kumi wrapped one arm around my neck and pulled me close. I didn’t hold back this time. The kiss was long, deep, and passionate. I lost myself in the taste of her mouth and the sensation of her silky skin as it brushed against me under the water.
Kumi’s hands roamed over my skin and traced the scars of my old and new life. She moaned softly as I pressed firmly against her and squeezed her hips.
“Looks like I might have to take you as a Swordslinger’s wife? What would King Beqai have to say about that?” I murmured as I kissed her on the neck and down, across the curve of her breasts.
“Let’s not talk about Father now,” she said, the words halfway to a gasp.
I laughed at that and kissed her until she seemed desperate to be taken. Kumi’s strong thighs slid around my hips, and her nails dug into my neck as I leaned into her. Her skin melded with the scent of the bathhouse and made my head spin. Her fingers raked over my back and shoulders and threatened to draw blood. Her tongue found mine and introduced me to another world of sensation. The water spun around us at each gasp and moan from Kumi. I drowned her in passionate kisses and tender caresses.
“More,” she breathed. “Give me more.”
“That an order, Princess?”
“With all the authority of the Qihin.” Her laugh turned into a sudden gasp of pleasure as I caught her under the legs and spun her to the wall.
I felt myself rise inside her, and Kumi’s moan filled the empty space of the bathhouse. Her fingernails found my lower back and hauled me into her. Her hair tickled me as I pressed her against the wall of the pool. Her teeth found my
