The thinner, shorter charcoal skinned woman snatched the feather from Eyoli''s hand, turning towards me and asking "These are from Arctic Cor''s, aren''t they?! How could you hunt one of these on your own?!"


    Nodding my head confusedly, I gestured towards the ice chest filled with the feathers from the Arctic Cor, saying "I uh... got a little hungry, and nothing else was around so... I managed to hunt one of these things."


    Vka stared at me in shock, while Eyoli let out a low whistle as she grabbed another feather.


    "That''s... impressive. Not many things can damage an Arctic Cor; I mean, their feathers are near imprable, even to spells. So how..?"


    Smiling wryly, I scratched the back of my head as I looked between Eyoli and Vka, saying "They might be hard to pierce, but blunt attacks still deal quite a bit of damage... especially if you crush them."


    Vka shook her head, looking back down towards the feather in her hand as she said "Crush them..? Did you use magic of some kind? You had to of; how would such an intelligent bird willingly fall into a trap like that?"


    Chuckling, I nodded as I gestured towards the chests, saying "A simple boulder above as they dove down towards me made it easy enough."


    They both let out disbelieving snorts, but the evidence wasying inside the chests before them, so they had to ept it.


    Coughing gently into her fist, Eyoli stared at the feather for a few more moments before asking "Well... do you wish to sell these to us? That would definitely earn you a spot to travel alongside us up North. Maybe even stay with us until we reach Pris City to trade everything away?"


    Shrugging, I gestured towards the chest and said "That''s fine with me; I was just using them as something to sleep on..."


    That made the two women sputter, blinking their eyes at me for a few moments in silence before shaking their heads.


    "Ok~ay... so... let''s go see if the Priestess is alright with that trade."


    Nodding, I began to pull the two chests behind me as Eyoli and Vk continued to lead me towards the center of the encampment, giving me a good look at the various tents filled with more of these gray skinned, white tattooed women.


    Honestly, each of them was rather beautiful in their own right, the fit, muscled look each of them had pairing well with their more tribalistic appearances.


    For a woman like myself who enjoys the muscled physiques that are all around me, this was eye candy heaven...


    And it was also a torturous hell, since I was now forced to handle my desires on my own and having all these utterly gorgeous muscle women around, their exotic gray skin and primal tattoos almost making me salivate as they walked around without a care in the world.


    Besides my ever slipping mind, I noticed that the women seemed rather jovial at all times, constantly making jokes and poking fun at one another and having augh.


    Even as they dismembered the newest kill, theyughed, while the hunters told grand stories for the amusement of their peers.


    Crafters and Smiths worked away at the pelts and bones of the animals, using them as materials for their clothing and weapons, whilst others made various utensils for eating or cooking.


    Some gathered around a fire and listened to one woman wearing bone jewelry speak, each one wearing a revenant expression as they sat, enraptured by her words.


    Following my curious gaze, Eyoli smiled softly as she said "That is one of the Priestess'' daughters, who is hoping to one day take up the mantle of Priestess. They hold our history and beliefs close to their hearts and continue to preach it to us, so that we may never stray from our teachings."


    Vka and Eyoli bowed slightly to the woman as we passed her fire, getting a brief nce and nod in response.


    "If you don''t mind me asking... I don''t really know... much about you all, nor about this ce..."


    Eyoli continued to smile as she nced at Vka, who nodded stiffly towards her.


    "Well... the Priestess will tell you about us and our people, so I''ll speak on our location. Currently, we are on the border of the Hoarfrost Sect''snds and the Nevrokopi State; we''ll be heading into Nevrokopi soon enough. Anyways, this is the Rimnds, and many peoplee out towards the Cimmerian Mountains, the fancy name for the Labyrinthian''s border. Some seek to hunt the few monsters and animals that live out here, like we are doing, or they n on venturing into the Cimmerian Mountains in hope of finding riches or gaining experience in battles.


    With us, though, you needn''t worry; we live inside the Rimnds all year round, and we know it like the back of our hands! Should we encounter a group from Nevrokopi or the Hoarfrost Sect, it''ll be dealt with the same as always; warily staring at one another and avoiding confrontation if possible."


    Nodding, I asked "How did you know I wasn''t from either ce? It seems like your tribe doesn''t really like either of them."


    Vka let out a scoff, ncing at me as she spoke, her voice soft and low.


    "You neither have the Hoarfrost Brand on your brow, nor the white or gray hair of the Nevrokopians. Besides, if you were of them, you wouldn''t be able to hold back your disgust; both view us as little more than uncivilized brutish women who know no better."


    Furrowing my brow, I was about to ask another question when Vka muttered "We''re here.", gesturing towards therge tent that we stopped in front of.


    Eyoli lifted up the two ice chests and ced them under her arms, carrying them inside as she followed behind me, while Vka remained outside.<novelsnext></novelsnext>


    The tent was made from various pelts stitched together, and it was held up with poles made from bone, all of which was engraved.


    Arge pile of cushions and pillows was situated in front of us, while a small tableden with tiny bones and wooden trinkets sat before it.


    Candles were lit around the tent, and I could smell the burning herbsing from an incense burner in the back.


    A small rack held the Priestess'' staff, a sharpened shoulder de attached to a haft of wood to create an axe, and a bunch of smaller daggers.


    However, what was drawing my attention wasn''t the various things scattered around, nor the herbs burning.


    Covered by a screen of pelts, the Priestess'' ''bedroom'' emitted the scent of sex, whilst a woman moaned loudly.


    Taking a deep breath to try and calm myself down, I heard Eyoli sigh as sheid the chests down, muttering "Course she picked her..."


    "Eyoli~? Is that you? Ah~ I''ll be out in a moment... Come on Iya, tighten up~!"


    The moans grew louder as the sound of flesh smacking flesh joined in, and Eyoli sighed again as she gestured towards the table, saying "Please, sit. I''ll make some tea for us while we wait."


    Grabbing one of the pillows, I sat down in front of the table and focused on the small wooden trinkets, distracting myself from the scents and sounds that threatened to drive me insane.


    Some of the wood was carved into weapons, some was carved into t coins with borate shapes decorating the front and back, whilst others were made into small cubes that resembled dice.


    When Eyoli ced a wooden cup in front of me filled with a green liquid, I reached forwards and sniffed at it, the hints of fresh tea leaves and ginger filling my nostrils.


    Taking a sip, I hummed in appreciation of the strong, yet smooth vor of the tea, which warmed me up instantly.


    Eyoli and I sat in silence, listening to the sounds of the Priestess enjoying herself before eventually a series of loud grunts and moans echoed throughout the tent.


    Moments after, the tall, lithe Priestess emerged from her quarters, her charcoal skin slick with sweat, while her gray hair was matted.


    Flipping it away, she raked a hand through her hair and frowned, before plopping down on the pillows, uncaring of her nudity.


    The sight made my mind nk out for a moment, and when paired with the heavy scent of the Priestess wafting towards me, I could only bite my tongue to jolt myself back to ''normal''.


    "Oh, traveler. What brings you here?"


    Turning towards me, the Priestess tilted her head as she looked me over, the lust in her eyes apparent as she nced at Eyoli as well.


    However, Eyoli quickly stepped up and showed her the chests, making the Priestess'' frivolous, uncaring attitude shift into a serious one as she reached down and grabbed a feather.


    "Huh... such a bountiful woman you are, traveler... in more ways than one, it would seem. Let me guess... you wish to buy our protection to head Northwards with these? For us to take you to Pris City?"


    Fixing me with those pitch ck eyes of hers, the Priestess raised a brow as she waited for an answer, which I gave as a raspy "Yes, please..."


    Nodding to herself, the woman looked into the chest for a moment before saying "Very well; that''s more than reasonable. Eyoli, take this over to Unkata, tell her to use them as she sees fit; that old hag is good with her hands, so lets see what she fashions from these."


    "Very well, Priestess. Anything else?"


    Pursing her lips, the Priestess turned towards the table for a moment, reaching forwards and grabbing one of the dice and rolling it.


    Observing it for a few seconds, she smirked as she turned back to Eyoli, nodding as she said "You can indeed, Eyoli. I wish to see your dance again, and it seems Areseta does as well. Maybe our Goddess will bless us again soon..."


    The muscr Eyoli widened her eyes in surprise at that, before nodding hurriedly as she excitedly said "As you wish, Priestess!" before taking the chest filled with feathers out of the tent.


    Returning her gaze to me, the woman smirked as she rested her chin on her hand, reaching for a coin this time.


    Expertly spinning it around her fingers, the Priestess asked "I imagine you''re curious about your newly acquired bodyguards, hmm~? Would you like to hear our story, traveler?"