No Escape from Fate

7 A Hot Welcome for the Guests

By Manar’s order, I was dragged out of that disgusting puddle and sent to Alaya so she could make me look more “presentable” for these fine gentlemen.

Unfortunately for me, Alaya wasn’t alone in this mission. Several young women were sent to help her in the grand process of transforming me.

They washed me for what felt like hours with fragrant water, rubbed me down with all sorts of creams, dried and kneaded me with four hands at once, combed my hair, dressed me, and did who knows what else. Apparently, smooth, hairless skin is highly valued here as well, so some of the procedures were… educational — and at times, extremely unpleasant.

Once they had me wrapped up in the gaudiest dress imaginable, I was finally “ready.” Manar himself, along with Dildan, came in person to inspect the result.

After the grand inspection, I was officially handed over into the “caring” hands of the king’s attendants — specifically, the so-called bride wardens, who had come for me. From this moment on, as Manar jokingly put it, I was their headache.

The guards were about a dozen tall, broad-shouldered men in armor — clearly well-trained. And leading them, of course, was that insufferable man, Kays — who, as it turned out, was one of the royal mages authorized by the monarch himself. I couldn’t help but wonder what exactly he had done to earn that title.

For the guests, the village threw an entire celebration — a grand feast with songs and dancing. After all, the delegation was staying overnight. At dawn, we were to set out on a long journey.

Aside from me, the royal envoys had already found two more girls from other settlements — my fellow victims of fate, Vasmiya and Nufira. Both of them were stunningly beautiful — the kind of beauty that could make anyone stop and stare.

Vasmiya was clearly the youngest among us. A frightened, withdrawn brunette with deep, perceptive brown eyes, she looked as if she had never seen a man in her life. Every time one of the guards so much as glanced her way, she flinched and darted her eyes around like a terrified rabbit surrounded by wolves. A child, really — though her body had already become that of a grown woman.

Nufira, on the other hand, was the complete opposite — confident, composed, and, surprisingly, quite calm. A long-legged, curly-haired blonde with bright green eyes and a full, luscious chest, she seemed utterly unbothered by the situation. Instead of fear, there was curiosity in her gaze — especially when it came to Kays. She didn’t even try to hide her interest; her eyes kept wandering back to him again and again.

And to be fair… it was hard not to be fascinated by him. The man was absurdly handsome — infuriatingly so. Those piercing eyes, that daring smirk… for a moment, they made your breath catch before you could even realize it.

We weren’t being guarded out of fear that we might run away — Kays had placed some sort of binding spell on us. We couldn’t move beyond a certain distance from him, though within the limits of that invisible boundary we could walk freely. That’s why, at the moment, the three of us sat together on enormous pillows directly across from the royal mage himself, while everyone else around us celebrated with reckless joy.

The guards and the local officials were enjoying themselves to the fullest — stuffing their faces with food and drink, laughing, and boasting about the adventures they’d faced on their way here. I, however, couldn’t swallow a single bite — my stomach was tied in knots from anxiety and disgust at their stories.

When the ceremonial speeches and displays of pomp were finally over, and most of the villagers and children had gone home to rest, the square where we sat began to change. People started putting up thick curtains and tall tents, enclosing the space.

It didn’t take long for me to realize why they were going to all this trouble.

While we were sitting on the platform in the park and the guards were sharing their stories with the tipsy men from the village, women in revealing and provocative outfits slowly began to approach the king’s sentinels. Some shamelessly sat on the men’s laps, wrapping their arms around their necks, while others moved seductively in front of them, pressing their bodies together, kissing openly, and giving the warriors meaningful looks. The men quickly grew distracted — their hands wandered toward their belts as they forgot about their conversations.

One of these women approached Kays as well. She gracefully sat down on his lap, wearing a very short and daring dress. Turning her back to him, the dark-haired beauty began to move her body sensually, rubbing herself against him. The brown-haired man didn’t mind the attention at all — his hands began to explore her curves with clear interest. He leaned closer, kissing her neck and whispering something that made the woman breathe heavily and smile with pleasure.

In response to Kays’s words, she arched her back and spread her slender legs wide, revealing to us her bare and glistening-from-moisture intimacy beneath the short red dress.

Kays, his expression now harder, roughly gripped her breast with one hand, then slid the other along her body, caressing her hips and rear. Then, suddenly, he looked straight at me. Without breaking eye contact, his hand moved lower and he slowly plunged two of his fingers into the w***e, from which she moaned protractedly, rolled her eyes and began to push herself onto his phalanges.

Unable to bear such an explicit sight, I turned my gaze away, my heart pounding. Heat rushed to my face, the air felt unbearably suffocating, and a betraying wetness flooded my underwear.

Damn it! That scene will stay before my eyes for a long time — the way that girl was writhing, begging the mage for more, and that sinful, wicked smirk on Kays’s face at that moment…

Glancing at Vasmiya and Nufira, I saw them sitting in complete shock — their faces red as tomatoes, eyes lowered to the ground, breathing unevenly. Clearly, I wasn’t the only one affected by what we’d just seen.

What a night! It looked like a full-blown orgy was about to begin among the soldiers and that... i***t.

I stood up and decided to take a walk around, to find a toilet and, at the same time, cool down my thoughts and my body.

Having easily found a restroom nearby and taken care of my needs, I washed my face and neck with cold water.

What were all those strange preparations for — for me and, apparently, for the girls too? After all, it’s still several weeks to the capital of the kingdom! And traveling in such an outfit is completely inconvenient and could even be dangerous. Pure show-off in front of the higher-ups! Same as everywhere... It seems that the desire to please the superiors doesn’t depend on the world at all.

After refreshing myself, I leave the restroom and head toward the tents, where the sounds of some rather entertaining activity can already be heard. While I was away, there seemed to be more tents set up, and I became a bit confused and lost track of where exactly I should go.

Rounding yet another stretched canopy, I noticed ahead of me Kays walking with that same girl toward one of the tents. She was cooing something seductively to him, pressing herself against his body, while he kept his face completely impassive. I really didn’t want them to see me here, so I hid behind the screen of one of the tents — however, curiosity got the better of me and I... yes, I admit it, I started watching! I can’t explain the wild urge to watch that bastard.

After escorting the satisfied and heated girl into his tent and giving her a smack on her juicy butt, Kays remained alone outside for a while. Carefully glancing around, he took off his upper clothing and appeared bare-chested.

In the moonlight, his body looked utterly unreal and damn seductive. Saliva filled my mouth as I watched how provocatively and sensually his muscles rolled beneath his tanned skin, outlining every curve and line.

However, what immediately caught my attention was that there were no karpits on Kays’s body! From his arms, across his torso, up to his neck — there was a continuous black tattoo, without any patterns!

But I didn’t even have time to think about it, because in the next second, Kays was covered with a faint glow and appeared in his usual form for this world — with bright and curved karpits on his strong arms and abs. An incredible body, if only not for his sharp tongue and vile character.

I must admit, I’ve always gone weak for guys with tattoos. Even though Anton had more conservative views, not understanding this “vandalism” on the body. But I really liked the energy of beautiful patterns combined with a well-groomed physique.

While I was pondering the differences between Anton’s and my worldviews, I lost sight of where Kays had gone. Suddenly, a huge hand grabbed my shoulder deftly and sharply spun me around to face him.

From fright, I thought my soul would leave my body before its time. However, I didn’t even manage to scream before my mouth was rudely silenced, as he only looked at me with his furious gaze.