Bookworld Online: Marsh Man

Bokuboy

Gella arrived, said she did great on both exams, and we went out to wait for the carriage. It picked us up and delivered us back to the Sanctuary in short order. Once there, I spent several hours with Jensen and Molly, going over everything that went on and needed to be done. I approved of the changes and authorized the extra money expenditures.

We had supper with everyone, greeting them all like old friends, even the slaves from the other ship. Most had fulfilling roles to do and were kept busy, mostly on their own initiative. A lot of them had no idea that they could ever be good at anything, since they had been raised as slaves since they were children.

Those slaves took a long time to find out what they liked to do. Once they did, though... they did it with such enthusiasm that the older slaves had to curtail them and make sure that they didn't overdo things. It made a lot of the others laugh when they learned how much they had to be stopped from working, even at night when the slaves would sneak into the workshops and would continue working.

“I hope you forget to check some evenings.” I whispered to Jensen, who chuckled and nodded.

“We don't force them to behave, only restrict how hard they try to keep working. We don't want them losing interest or overloading them with too much of one thing.” Jensen said.

I nodded in agreement. I would have gone a little crazy if all I had to do was enchantments during the long marsh winter months. Doing too much would have made me sick of doing them and I wouldn't have been as proficient with them as I am. The difference between an interest and an obsession was a small one, apparently.

I worked that evening in the potions area that was set aside for my creme work and I spent the entire time there until two hours to midnight. Farra came and retrieved me this time after working herself with the old man on the more generic potions. We went to our room to meet the others, had a nice communal bath, then I climbed into bed with Farra.

Once again, I didn't question why they were no longer piling in with me and were back to taking turns. I just cuddled in with my apprentice and promised that I would spend much more time with her when the exams were over. That made her quite happy to hear, since our time working together had been severely reduced after coming back here to the Gulf Kingdom.

“My lord... can you...” Farra whispered into my ear.

“You know we can't have that kind of a relationship.” I whispered back. “Our binding is as master and apprentice and...”

“...I can accept it as a lesson, my lord.” Farra said. “No man would accept me after... after they knew...”

I understood that they believed she was damaged and couldn't accept their affection, not realizing that was exactly what she needed. The sex was secondary for her, since she had that for a long time before I rescued her from the Empire's mages. It was the caring and attention that she was starved for. She had been used for far too long to only want sex from someone.

I gave her a soft and tender kiss, then a sly smile. Farra looked a little surprised by that, then I slipped down under the blanket. Her moan as I gave her the male version of the ritual made her orgasm a whole bunch of times. I wasn't sure why she was so responsive and didn't question it. I kissed my way back up her body and her eyes looked frantic as she pulled me into a kiss and then wrapped her legs around me and shoved my erection right inside.

“OHHHH!” Farra moaned loudly and then panted and moaned as I had sex with her. Like Eludora, she constantly kissed me and held me close as she melted in the affection she was receiving. She seemed to enjoy that more than the actual sex, which was both odd and satisfying.

I no longer wondered why she liked to kiss and cuddle with Gella in the bath so much. She just enjoyed the intimacy and didn't require much sex at all. Gella must have known about that and indulged her, because she never complained that she was always the holder when in the bath.

We all eventually fell asleep and the morning arrived before we knew it. Another bath for us all and then we dressed in our best clothing. A missive had been sent the night before to Melanie and asked for an early morning appointment. No details were given, however. Not over an open message. It couldn't get out that we were going to blacklist certain people and businesses from buying our potions and superior ingredients.

The ride to the castle was fairly quick and the others had to wait while I was brought alone into a side chamber and not the main throne room. That was a relief, since it meant that Queen Ellen wouldn't be present in the little meeting.

“Lord Drake.” Melanie said and started to stand up from behind her desk.

“No, please remain seated.” I said and strode across the room to her, helped her regain her seat, then fluffed her pillow to ease the strain on her back.

“How did you know I needed that?” Melanie asked, surprised.

“I spent a lot of time with Helena when at the old estate.” I said and bent over to take her hand, then shared some magic with her as I kissed the back of it.

“OHH!” Melanie gasped, had an orgasm, her belly bulged slightly as the baby kicked several times, then she peed herself.

“I'm terribly sorry.” I said and pushed her chair back and knelt to examine the extent of my mistake. “Attendant!” I said loudly.

A young woman ran into the room and saw where I was. “My Lady? What...”

“I need cleaning supplies, a replacement skirt, a more comfortable chair, and a new pillow for her back.” I ordered and cut her off.

The young woman nodded before she ran out the door again.

“D-David...” Melanie whispered, her face red.

“I forgot how responsive to magic a baby is.” I said and placed a hand on her belly. I sent out a calming wave of magic and the agitated baby settled down and stopped making a fuss.

Melanie sighed in relief and then squeaked in surprise when I lifted her slightly and pulled her skirt off. When I pulled her panties off and used my fingers to open her red hair covered womanhood slightly, she yelled her indignation.

“DAVID!”

“I don't see any tearing or blood, so the kick to your bladder wasn't very damaging.” I said and slipped a finger inside of her to check for any damage that couldn't be seen.

“OHHH!” Melanie moaned loudly and came all over my hand. She reached down and grabbed my wrist, as if to stop me, then she looked into my eyes and moved my hand in and out as if it was a penis. She had the same frantic look on her face that Farra had last night after I licked her down there, so I added another finger for her to help her. She really liked that and moaned her pleasure for several minutes.

By the time the young attendant returned with the supplies we needed, Melanie was thoroughly embarrassed, fully relieved of sexual tension, and mortified that she had used my hand like that. She didn't say anything at all as I cleaned her up, with the attendant's vigilant eyes right there to make sure I did things properly and didn't take advantage of her.

We stood her up and cleaned up her backside of any wetness or drippings, did her thighs as well, then dressed her properly and replaced the chair. Melanie sat down and sighed with relief as she settled into the plushier chair. The attendant added the pillow to her back and Melanie was once again her poised and composed self. Or so it appeared. Her eyes were locked onto my face and she dared me to say anything to her about what happened.

“Helena required me to do much more than that while she was pregnant, Lady Melanie.” I said after the attendant left and she blushed again. “By more, I mean we barely left the bed when we were together. Not even to eat.”

Melanie blinked her eyes for several moments. “David, did you just say...”

“She needed constant sex to feel satisfied. Being denied my presence for so long while I was at the academy, made her desire to never let me out of her sight.”

Melanie thought about that. “The day you were taken...”

“Every break we took to check over the ship between testing runs, I was inside the ship and inside of Helena.” I said.

Melanie shivered at the thought, then she smiled. “Richard was almost the same. He said I was more desirable and couldn't stop wanting to be with me, even with the extra bump in the way.”

I nodded. “I can't say if it was the magic we shared or our bodies felt more connected the more we were together. Either way, we both benefited from it.”

“I really did.” Melanie said and then blushed again. “Thank you for your assistance.”

“I would offer more if you wouldn't feel insulted that another man would do such a thing to you in this state.” I said and she coughed and blushed so hard that she looked like she might faint.

Melanie took several minutes to recover. “I really should have a bath as my attendant suggested.”

That made me think of last night. “Perhaps an after bath ritual would help you relax?”

Melanie gasped and looked at me with anger on her face. “How DARE you suggest such a thing! I am the ROYAL CONCUBINE and soon to be KING MOTHER!”

I held up my hands in surrender. “You misunderstand. I meant for you to receive it, Lady Melanie.”

Her anger disappeared instantly and her face changed to a brilliant red that I didn't think was possible for a human to achieve. “Is... is that why... you wanted such an early meeting?”

I smiled. “Despite that being a valid reason, I only just thought of it. The reason I am here is to get a list of the businesses in collusion with the Mages Guild when they blacklisted people and businesses during their attempted take-over.”

“Is that all?” Melanie asked and turned in her chair to the filing cabinet shelves behind her. She went through a dozen folders and pulled out several sheets, copied them over quicker than I could have with all my fingers, and handed it to me. “Give me a minute to get the ones they ruined and pushed out of business.”

I nodded and she took several minutes to do so. I had several sheets of paper by the end and a very large list of potential clients, assuming they were still around and not killed or run off by the mages.

“Is there anything else?” Melanie asked.

“Yes.” I said and opened up several pouches on my bandoleer and handed her ten vials of single dose potions.

“What's this?” Melanie asked and picked one up.

“I know you can tell when someone is lying. The only drawback to that skill is that they can keep quiet.” I said and pointed to the tiny amount in the vial. “One dose is enough to force anyone to speak the truth for half an hour. If you give them more than that within a six hour time frame, it can cause sickness and in some cases death if given too much.”

Melanie's face showed shock, just like Pavinca's face had when I told her what it was.

“I thought that was enough of a repayment for this favor.” I said and held up the papers that I tucked into my bandoleer.

“David, I... this is... I don't know what to say.” Melanie said and looked at the ten vials.

“I only have just over 200 doses left, so don't use those ten doses all up at once.” I said with a smile.

Melanie barked a laugh. “I can't even fathom how much you could charge for these.”

“That's why they aren't for sale.” I said and stood to take her hand. “Thank you for your help and for allowing me to drop in practically unannounced.”

Melanie nodded and let me kiss her hand, despite what happened the last time. She almost looked disappointed that I didn't share any magic with her. “David...”

“My Lady?” The attendant asked as she stepped into the room. “Your bath is ready.”

I helped Melanie stand and her belly was quite prominent.

“Thank you, David.” Melanie said and I helped her waddle over to the door to her attendant. We stepped out into the hallway and the attendant took her hand from me. “David...”

“You need a demonstration?” I asked and she blushed as she nodded. “Do you have any male attendants?”

“No, Richard forbid it.” Melanie said with a fond smile. “Not even butlers are allowed near me.”

I chuckled and nodded. “Lead the way, attendant.”

The young woman looked at me and then at Melanie. “My Lady?”

“Lord Drake has offered a special service to the Royal Concubine.” Melanie said.

“Yes, My Lady.” The attendant said and led her to Melanie's quarters and the very large bathroom there. “Lord Drake, if you could wait outside while My Lady prepares...”

“It's part of the service.” I said and saw Melanie's blush, then I carefully took off all of her clothes, being specifically gentle when dealing with her delicate areas and not touching or caressing them.

The attendant watched me with intensity as I did so, with slight approval on her face as I worked, then I carefully helped Melanie into the bath. She watched as I diligently washed Melanie, gentle and caring, making sure that she was clean all over, even in certain areas that most people only barely washed and didn't ensure were completely clean.

“My Lady, you are bathed.” I said formally. “As you are in a delicate condition, I suggest laying down for this part.”

Melanie blushed and accepted my help out of the bath, then I dried her off completely, took a clean towel, and brought her into the bedroom. I put the towel down and had her sit on the edge of the bed.

The attendant opened her mouth to speak, then paused as I eased Melanie back to rest on a pillow. “Lord Drake, what...”

I moved Melanie's legs apart and looked at Melanie's face. She was quite unsure of what was going to happen, so I gave her a warm smile and then leaned in to gently kiss her between the legs.

“OHHH!” Melanie gasped and came.

“Well, that didn't take long.” I said and licked her. She gasped and came again. “It's a good thing this ritual has a time limit or it would have been over already.”

The attendant stood there with complete shock on her face as I performed the Ritual of Release on a woman. Melanie on the other hand, squirmed, moaned, and gasped as she panted from having me do the ritual to her.

When the ten minutes were up, she looked very satisfied and very pleased. I went back to the bathroom and brought out the cleaning things to finish washing her up and cleaned up the mess she had made.

“Lord Drake.” The attendant whispered when I was done. “How... I can't believe...”

“I know.” I said and stood up to help her dress Melanie into another set of work clothes. “Please don't tell anyone that I created it.”

The attendant blinked her eyes at me. “You... you...”

“Everyone believes that I only make potions and weapons of mass destruction.” I said and looked at Melanie's flushed face. “Lady Melanie, thank you for allowing me to see such grace and beauty.”

Melanie blushed and shook her head. “You debased yourself to give me the relief that I haven't felt since Richard was killed.” She said and leaned forward to kiss my cheek. “It is I that must thank you for doing such a thing for me, even if I am an adjunct to the royal family and am technically superior to you in social rank.”

I had to smile at her qualification. “I doubt I can return to do it again before your child is born.”

Melanie's mouth dropped open in shock, as did the attendant.

“Only another couple of weeks.” I said and touched her belly. “He's eager to see what you look like.”

“HE?!?” Melanie and the attendant exclaimed as one.

“Hmm? Didn't you know?” I asked. “I thought you said it was a boy the last time I saw you?”

“I said I hoped it was a boy!” Melanie said and then put a hand on mine that was still on her belly. “I'm having a boy. The king's son. Richard's son.”

I nodded. “I'll walk you back to your office.”

Melanie nodded and the three of us went back to her office, then she gasped and looked at me. “I need to tell Stephanie! She'll be so happy!”

We changed direction and went to the throne room instead. I stayed outside, so I wouldn't distract anyone from the good news. I listened as the Queen Mother yelled in happiness and hugged Melanie and Princess Rose said congratulations as well. I didn't hear Queen Ellen's voice, so I peeked inside the room and saw her frown.

I took out a piece of paper and wrote a note on it, then folded it up and cast a small wind spell at her as I let the note go. It zoomed across the room and slapped her right on the face.

“HEY!” Ellen yelled and grabbed it. She ran to the door to get to me and I ran off to the side and cast several spells to hide from both sight and smell. She growled something about skinning whoever did that and opened the now crumpled paper. She read it and had a thoughtful look on her face, nodded, and went back inside.

“You're welcome.” I said and left the castle. My suggestion that she could help raise a strong king for the next 20 years was easily accepted. She could create someone that was unlike her useless older brother and partially ineffectual father. Someone who could rule properly. Someone like herself.