Chapter 13 - The Wyvern Guild
"Just to be clear," Lukas said, "you still have to win the election, right?" He heard a giggle from Laera.
"Yes," Elvira confirmed, "but Jaren was the main competition. I'm the obvious choice now. I won't even have to bat an eyelash."
"Perhaps I should give it go," he suggested, a teasing undertone in his voice.
Laera's eyes sparkled with amusement, enjoying the exchange. Elvira was less than enthused. "You would just embarrass yourself. You're not even a member of the guild yet; no one knows who you are. Let's be real, do you really think you could beat me?" She gave him a practiced, artificial smile for emphasis.
"Don't get too cocky sister," Laera warned. "You're tempting him."
"I'm not even the least bit worried," Elvira said. "I play at a much higher level. You two don't even know what I'm capable of."
Lukas almost laughed out loud at the arrogant elf. She had Laera's pristine beauty on the outside, but her personality was certainly an acquired taste. "It could be fun to try," he mockingly challenged her, "but I'm not looking to jump into politics at the moment. What are you going to do to win my vote over?"
She leaned forward, her eyes glinting with a hint of excitement. "I'm glad you asked, Lukas. I can tell you what I might do, if you weren't dating my sister, but I wouldn't want to tempt you beyond your resolve."
"Alright!" Laera jumped in. "It's time to go to sleep. Does my thirsty older sister need a glass of water before bed?"
Lukas chuckled and began returning to his room.
"Lukas dear," Elvira called out to him. "Your room is this way."
"No it is not!" Laera stood firm. "We wouldn't want to tempt you beyond your resolve, would we?"
Lukas left the two sisters alone as he ventured back to his bed, where two of his sluts waited eagerly for the opportunity to keep him up all night.
***
The morning after their arrival, the team of six descended upon the delicious breakfast prepared by the hired help. The staff consisted of four members: the cook, the butler, and two maids. Gwyn spoke with the cook, working out an arrangement so she could prepare at least one meal a day for Lukas.
Elvira joined them for a quick bite before rushing off to the guild hall. Lukas and his girls followed behind not long after. The group formally registered with the Wyvern Guild, completing the necessary formalities. They visited the Vandhoven bank next and opened an account. Having accumulated a considerable sum of coins, they finally conceded that lugging their wealth around and hiding it under the mattress was no longer the wisest solution. Afterward, Laera convinced them to visit a nearby bakery, which was tempting her with its heavenly scents. They spent a moment savoring fresh honey cakes before moving on.
By mid-morning, the party had left Vandhoven and set off toward the caverns, navigating the Mystical Forest toward the majestic mountains. As they approached the range, the mouth of a cave came into view, promising access into the depths. A cool gust of cavern air blew in their faces as they stood in front of the entrance, filling them with a mixture of excitement and anticipation. It had been four long days since their last excursion into the caves, which had ended with back-to-back battles against a Demon Fiend and a Dark Warlock. Lukas smiled at his team, hoping for a less deadly but still challenging endeavor, full of mid-tier enemies and lucrative loot.
As they stepped into the cave, the sound of dripping water echoing on the rocky walls almost masked a sequence of low growls. A pack of eight cave hounds lunged forward at them. Their jaws were wide open, revealing sharp, jagged teeth, ready to rip through their prey. Laera, always first to strike in the caverns, unleashed a lightning spell as the others readied their weapons for the oncoming onslaught.
Lukas and Gemma stepped forward, challenging the pack to hone in on them. Blades met flesh as the hounds crashed into the Deviant and the Brawler. With a few expert slashes and well-placed arrows from Lucy and Gwyn, they quickly felled the beasts.
"Geez, throw a girl a bone," Fiona joked. She'd refrained from using her teleport, and thus hadn't even gotten the chance to fight.
The next room contained a horde of orcs, armed to the teeth and snarling with savage ferocity. Lukas charged through them with an ease that surprised him. His stats had improved by quite a bit since the last orc army they had faced. He spread his arms out and lunged at a pair of orcs, skewering both of them with his dual blades. He landed in a kneeling position next to their lifeless corpses. Gemma leapt over him and smashed into the enemy in front of them, while another orc flanked them from the side. An arrow soared over the crouching Adventurer and buried itself in the creature's eye.
Lukas glanced back, intending to give Lucy a grateful smile, but was surprised to see Gwyn standing there with her bow.
"Nice shot, babygirl!"
"Thanks, Daddy!"
Lucy certainly wasn't absent from the fight, though. She had found a ledge along the cave wall and was unleashing death from above. Lukas sprung onto his feet to back up Gemma, as a trio of orcs advanced on her. Like all the others, they fell swiftly and unceremoniously. The party of six had soon carved, pierced, and occasionally scorched their way through over two dozen orcs, and had barely broken a sweat doing so.
The next stage of their adventure found the party approaching a larger cavern with tall ceilings. Within seconds of entering, they were greeted with a splash of flames. Little pink creatures flew around high above their heads, launching fire attacks at the intruders. Lukas tried to get a better look at them, stepping to the side just as a flaming projectile flew past him. They were horrendously ugly creatures, numbering near a hundred strong, with little horns protruding from their heads and miniature dragon wings fluttering in the air.
"Demon pixies," Laera informed them. She turned to Lukas with a frown. "I'm sorry, but you are nothing more than a big, diversionary target in this fight."
Lukas scoffed and began waving his blades in the air, trying to lure a pixie down to his level. He witnessed arrows and lightning fly up into the expanse of the cavern; what he didn't see was any opportunity to strike. He could only swerve and jump around, dodging the numerous fiery attacks that rained down from near the cavern's ceiling. The flying pests kept their distance, content with hurling fireballs at the dancing Adventurers from their relatively safe height. Gemma and Lukas both started cursing at the small creatures in frustration, their clothing lightly singed. The melee prowess they were used to relying on was useless.
Recognizing the need for more ranged power, Lucy quickly tore off her shirt and bra, releasing her humongous tits. Laera had an intrigued look as she watched her teammate strip. Lukas was watching closely too, but for less innocent reasons. The blonde elf's expression turned from curiosity into utter shock as a second Lucy appeared out of thin air. The two identical archers got back to work immediately, shooting several demon pixies out of the sky, leaving Laera with many questions, but no time to ask them.
Lukas accepted his role in the fight, and sprinted across the cavern floor, drawing some fire away from his battery of ranged attackers. He thought about prompting Gwyn to take a hit, but his HP was still high. He noted that she wasn't wasting any time trying to dodge regardless. Her focus was on knocking the little devils out of the sky.
The presence of an additional Ranger, even for just thirty seconds, was devastating for the demon pixies. The gnarly pink creatures fell in droves as the Adventurers cleared the room.
"How did you do that?" Laera exclaimed. "How do you have a skill I've never seen before?" After a few seconds of silence, realization dawned on the elven mage. She glanced at Lukas and blushed. "Oh."
Fiona smiled with wicked glee at the opportunity to tease the Anoran. "Laera, you should show our Ranger your extra skill. Lukas looks very ready to give you some mana after that titty show from Lucy."
"I will do no such thing!" Laera protested, but the redhead's idea caused her to glance over at Lukas' bulging trousers. "Lukas, could you come with me?"
***
The team tackled several more rooms, fighting off trolls, rock golems, and fanged spiders before calling it a day. They headed back to Vandhoven, content with their first visit to the caves on that side of the mountains.
Gemma did her fair share of grumbling on the trip back. "I swear, those little buggers were the most frustrating thing I've ever faced," she said, shaking her head. "I'll be happy if we never face demon pixies again."
Lucy just chuckled and nudged her friend playfully. "I didn't mind them so much. That fight was very... freeing for me."
Fiona snorted. "You converted Lukas. I don't think he minded being so useless when he had those things to stare at." She gave Lucy's breasts a light poke.
The banter continued the rest of the journey. They returned to the mansion to find Elvira scarfing down dinner. "The election starts in two days," she said frantically. "I have a meeting with some influential people in just a few minutes. Remember to behave while I am gone." She arose, stuffing one more bite into her mouth.
"I thought you were the 'obvious' choice?" Lukas questioned with a hint of mockery. "Why are you having to work so hard?"
She gave him a frown. "I wouldn't expect you to understand the intricacies of politics, Lukas dear. Maybe when you get older, I can give you some coaching." The elf whirled around and rushed out the door, leaving her unfinished meal on the table.
"Have fun batting your eyelashes," Lukas called out to the fleeing figure.
The six Adventurers took their seats at the table and began dishing out their own dinner. The atmosphere was light and jovial as they made fun of Elvira's obsession with the upcoming election. Even the staff listened in, enjoying the humorous commentary regarding their elven boss.
"Her first decree as Guildmaster will be to declare her birthday as 'Elvira Day,'" Lucy said with a laugh.
Fiona stood up and did her best Anoran imitation. "As your newly elected Guildmaster, I can make you all a promise -- that my daddy will buy me whatever I want." The group laughed at Fiona's failed Anoran accent as much as her joke.
"Um," Gwyn interjected with a worried expression, "if she wins, will her parents come to visit?" The table fell silent as the question hung in the air.
Lucy was the first to speak. "What's wrong with her parents coming to visit?"
Everyone erupted in laughter, but it died down quickly. All eyes then went to Laera.
The elf shrugged. "The Wyvern Guild is the one furthest away from Anora. My parents don't visit often, but this could give them a good reason to come."
"So why did Elvira pick the Wyvern Guild?" Lukas asked. "Or maybe I should be asking why your parents let her."
"There are fewer Anorans here," Laera explained, "which actually works in her favor. The Anoran name is still respected here, but people aren't as annoyed because they don't have to interact with them every day. If she were to join another guild, she'd have to navigate the Anoran hierarchy and support senior members ascending to leadership positions. Here, she's on track to become the youngest Guildmaster ever, in any guild. If she gets to enjoy that extra distance from my parents, well... she certainly didn't bring that up when she made her case to them."
