Chapter 436 435: Morning Spar



With everyone slowly waking up as the light of dawn spilled into the room, I smiled softly as I gently shook them each awake, making sure we were all up and ready to go before the sun left the horizon entirely.

Kat was up in mere moments after I shook her awake, looking around the dim room with caution in her every motion and in her eyes, which made my heart ache some more, though her small wry smile as she shook her head soothed that ache slightly.

Anput stretched out with a large yawn, going from being in a small ball to a long, thin line as she loosened her muscles and cracked her joints, moaning softly as she got everything back to normal.

Leone sat up and yawned cutely, her ash gray hair a mess as she stared blankly at her morning wood, which made me smirk as I watched her glance at Kat.

Without skipping a beat Kat began to service the Vampire and I, while Anput seemed free of the clutches of morning arousals, lounging beside us and observing it play out with interest.

When Leone and I were taken care of, we all got up and made our way over towards the bath, alternating between being washed and washing someone else.

Having Kat sitting in front of me again, her smooth, supple skin being slathered in soap and her hair getting unknotted as I gently ran my hands through it was another soothing moment, the familiarity of this thing we had done hundreds, if not thousands of times feeling so good to return to.

After I had gotten her thoroughly lathered in soap and had her hair and fur cleaned, I rinsed her off before walking over to the bath with her, sinking into the hot water with a sigh.

I had to fight off the lull of the water as it tried to muddle my mind and send me to sleep, but Kat made that easy as she sat on my lap and faced me, her lips latched to mine as we began our servicing of one another anew.

Anput joined in this time, and after we were all relieved of any urges, we left the bath feeling satisfied and clean.

Throwing on our clothes, I watched as Kat slipped into her maid uniform, a small smile on her lips as she looked at herself in the mirror, her tail shifting slightly.

The rest of us wore our normal clothing; Anput had her loose cloth coverings, Leone had her robe, and I wore my shirt and pants.

Walking out into the halls, we made our way towards Mom's room, where she, Mother, and Miss Julie were all lounging on the couch, talking quietly amongst themselves.

When we entered, Mom grinned as she rang the bell, summoning one of the servants and telling them to get breakfast brought to our room.

"We need to leave in an hour to reach the Capital by around noon, so if there is anything you want to do before we leave, now is the time."

I looked over towards the other three, my lips pursed as I thought for a few seconds before saying "We'll eat quickly then go spar. I want to expend some energy before we are cooped up in a carriage for hours again."

That made Mother roll her eyes at me, though she smirked as she saw Mom nodding her head, agreeing with me wholeheartedly.

Breakfast was a simple affair, consisting of scrambled eggs, pancakes, and sausage links, all of which we scarfed down in mere moments while leaving Mother and Miss Julie staring at us disapprovingly.

Even Leone ate quickly, understanding that this was something we were all going to be doing, and she sated the rest of her appetite along the way as she drank from Kat's wrist.

Reaching the training grounds, we each began to go through the warmup routine that Nirinia had drilled into us before that event happened, getting our muscles and joints loosened and ready to go as we picked up some wooden weapons.

I stepped out first, gesturing for Kat to join me as I said "Anput, guide Leone a bit on the basics again. I'll see if Kat's kept her edge..."

The Dogkin raised a brow at me, her dagger held loosely in her hand as she stood quietly in front of me.

Giving the sword a few swings to get a feel for its weight, I nodded to myself before pointing the blade at Kat's large chest, saying "Whenever you're ready, Kat..."

She spun her dagger around a few times before flickering forwards, her speed surprising me as she appeared off to my left, taking advantage of the one handed sword I had.

Her dagger stabbed out towards my side, and I had to pivot around her blade and prepare to block her next attack as we stared into the others eyes.

I was slightly caught off guard by her speed, and I duly noted that her dagger had sliced through the air with more force than it normally did...

It would seem that my puppy had sharpened her claws during our time apart...

My sword connected with her dagger as she slashed towards my abdomen, and I parried the blade downwards, using that to flick my wrist up towards her chest.

The tip rested near her throat, and she gave me a wry smile as she took a step back.

"Not bad, Kat... certainly better then before, but..."

She nodded, her ears twitching as she said "I didn't have much chance to practice techniques... most of my fights were won in the first strike, or allowed to be led on..."

I snorted at that lost part, understanding what she meant with that as I glanced towards her sheathed daggers.

"Still the same murderpuppy huh~?"

Kat gave me a dry look before tapping the blades, my gaze reminding her as she looked towards where Anput and Leone were.

"I need to ask her to forge me another dagger or two... I broke my ranged enchantment when I was teleported. Maybe get something with a bit more reach this time..? A rapier, perhaps..."

Seeing her furrowing her brow as she thought to herself, I nodded as I imagined what she could do with a rapier instead of a dagger; the same weight but with more range would certainly be deadly in her hands.

Of course, she'd be trading off the cutting edge a dagger has for the piercing of a rapier, but that was what here enchantments and magics were for.

We returned to our spar after a few moments, and I slowly began to hone her skills once more, all while I marveled at the new speed and strength that her body had.