After having fled from whatever danger I felt at the border between the Dryad and Elf territories, I eventually stopped running once my mana got just below the halfway point, figuring if someone was truly chasing behind us, they would've long since caught up to us by now.
"Are we safe?" Asked Lazuli curiously as she removed herself from Alexander's arms while landing on the ground and looking behind them, only for him to shrug his shoulders.
"Haa, I don't really know. I hope so, though." Replied Alexander lightly with a shake of his head as he sat down while leaning against a tree, his words causing Lazuli to furrow her brows.
While Lazuli watched our surroundings, I used this opportunity to recuperate my lost mana by meditating, which was significantly faster than allowing it to refill passively on its own. I was never a fan of sitting in the same spot doing nothing, so it was pretty boring. However, Lazuli ended up sitting on my lap halfway through, which helped somewhat alleviate the boredom.
"There doesn't seem to be anyone chasing after us." Said Lazuli calmly, her words causing Alexander to nod while opening his eyes before standing up.
"Well, that's good, but I just realized something incredibly stupid. Humans and Demons aren't allowed through the barrier, so how am I supposed to walk around this territory without being immediately spotted?" Remarked Alexander as he observed his surroundings before looking at Lazuli, who hummed to herself.
"Hmm, I did not think about that." Muttered Lazuli lightly as she folded her arms while looking at Alexander, who rubbed his face.
"Ugh, I really should've thought things through before breaking that spell." Said Alexander with a deep sigh as he raised his head, looking at the sky through the forest's canopy.
"What if you just cover your appearance?" Said Lazuli as she looked at Alexander, who nodded before spreading his arms.
"Not trying to be an ass, but with what clothes, Lazuli; all I have on me is a few spare clothes which will make me stand out like a sore thumb if I try to use them, and my apron. I don't have a cloak or anything." Replied Alexander blandly as he looked at Lazuli, who faintly nodded with a hum.
"The Dryad Kingdom will have cities; I can enter one and acquire a cloak for you." "Now, that is a plan for which I have no smart remarks." Said Lazuli and Alexander, respectively, as the latter calmly nodded, only for the former to point in every direction.
"If that's so, which way shall we go? Can your heart lead us?" Asked Lazuli as she looked at Alexander's chest, prompting him to spin in a circle before suddenly stopping.
"Um, this way… I think." Said Alexander as he faced Northeast, his words prompting Lazuli to follow right beside him while they walked through the forest.
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Although it took several hours, we did find a dirt path, which was a sign we were walking in the correct direction. By the middle of the night, we had finally arrived near a city; it looked really calm, though it was night, so not many people were awake.
Right now, I am awaiting Lazuli's return, and thankfully, our Adventurer license works for both the Elf and Dryad territories; otherwise, Lazuli would have to sneak into the city.
Speaking of Dryads, there were many, and most resembled Master, except none had horns similar to hers, which was weird, but maybe she was special… More special than she already was.
'Well, she did say Dryads can't normally speak to trees, so maybe those horns of hers were like antennas?' Thought Alexander lightly as he sat on a branch and tapped his chin, only to shake his head.
None of the Dryads I could see could compare to Elves in terms of average beauty, but I felt like that was to be expected; it wouldn't be fair if both the Elves and Dryads were naturally beautiful.
"Though I will say, I didn't see a single Elf out of shape; some God must've blessed them with amazing physiques or something." Muttered Alexander with envy as he clicked his tongue while folding his arms.
While letting my mind wander across various random things, I finally spotted Lazuli exiting the city after two more hours, causing me to sigh in relief as I leaped off the tree branch, landing on the ground directly beside the tree.
"Took you long enough; what were you doing?" Asked Alexander with a raised eyebrow as he looked at Lazuli, who tossed him his space pouch while approaching him.
"I was gathering information; the Capital city is North, so we've been heading in the correct direction." Replied Lazuli as she glanced at Alexander, who snapped his fingers before giving her a thumbs up.
"Genius. See, this is why I knew you should've come with me." Said Alexander with a faint smirk as he looked at Lazuli while retrieving a black cloak from his pace pouch, only for her to raise an eyebrow.
"I'm the one who decided to join you, Alex." "Ah, I love you as well, Lazuli." Said Lazuli and Alexander, respectively, as the former tilted her head in confusion, only for a passionate kiss to clear her mind.
"So, how do I look?" Asked Alexander with a faint smirk as he looked at Lazuli, who shook her head.
"I recommend removing your armor; you look too bulky." Replied Lazuli as she looked at Alexander, who clicked his tongue before doing just that.
"How about now?" "Better." Said Alexander and Lazuli, respectively, as the latter nodded, causing the former to smirk while removing his hood.
"Alright, with this, let us head to the Capital City; I don't want to spend any more time here than I have to." Added Alexander as he stretched before turning North, only for Lazuli to suddenly hug him from behind, stopping him.
"It's the night, Alex. Shouldn't we wait until the morning before we start our journey?" Asked Lazuli with a faint smirk as she rubbed her body against Alexander's back, causing his manhood to quickly harden.
"Y-Yes, you're right; how could I forget; let's just make sure we're deep enough in the forest where no one can hear you." Replied Alexander with a lustful grin as he picked up Lazuli and eagerly sprinted deeper into the forest.
"Do you want me to transform back to normal–" "Whatever you like, I'll be happy to make love to your Human or Elven appearance." Remarked Lazuli and Alexander, respectively, as the latter gazed downwards at the former, who with a faint smile while she undressed herself.
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After making love with Lazuli for the remainder of the night, getting her to scream in pleasure for hours while she proceeded to drain me of my seed, though when morning came, we reluctantly came to a stop and headed north, making our way toward the capital city, where the Royal family resided.
It took us a few days to reach our destination, though we also took a few detours along the way, which mainly consisted of stopping by a city or two we happened to encounter; however, the good news was my cloak seemed to work perfectly, granted I didn't enter through the normal way like everyone else, I sneaked through by teleporting myself into the city, an easy feat when I had eyes that could see through objects and walls.
No one really seemed to care about my presence at all, which was perfect, though I think the fact I walked beside Lazuli, who looked like an Elf, helped. Speaking of Elves, there was surprisingly a decent amount of them here; I was expecting only to see a small number of them, but it was decently diverse between the two species, which wasn't something I saw in the Elven Kingdom.
"So that's the Capital? Looks pretty big and heavily fortified." Remarked Alexander lightly as he stood far away atop a branch, his figure concealed by the thick and lush canopy.
"Shall we enter?" Asked Lazuli curiously as she glanced at Alexander, who nodded before frowning.
"Yes, but let's wait until night; that should make teleporting into the city easier. However, I would like to add I'm going to meet the Royal Family alone, and this is not for discussion… Understand?" Replied Alexander firmly as he glanced to his left, sternly eyeing Lazuli, who tilted her head in confusion before nodding.
I wasn't about to put Lazuli even more at risk than she already was for a personal desire of mine; she was very special, arguably more special than me if one really thought about what she meant. She was the combination of magic and technology, and it's terrifying to consider what the people of this world could create once they managed to master technology as well.
'A magical nuclear warhead. Yeah, that's beyond terrifying.' Mused Alexander with a wry expression, only to shake his head.
Of course, all that stuff would be invented hundreds of years into the future, most likely simply because magic was far more versatile, energy-efficient, and produced zero waste, but hey, it was definitely a possibility.
"For now, let's just wait until the sun sets." Said Alexander lightly as he leaned against the tree while Lazuli sat in his embrace, the two silently enjoying each other's company.