The rings were a side note for now, and I still had many places to visit.
"Grog, there are two large cocoons in the ground. I want you to carefully remove them and then take them back to the Keep. Take these three people with you, and make sure to explain who they are," I instructed Grogvel.
Chey had quilted down after he finally realized that he wasn't going to die. The others had been silent the entire time, but I was going to get to the next.
"Dani, the girls, will help you, but find Lidy, and she will get you something to eat. That reminds me, good lord am I hungry! Nushi, Howl? Can we get going?" I asked Nushi, but she instantly became distracted.
The mention of my talking pup made Nushi's eyes get big as she finally noticed Howl. The woman completely ignored me and walked over to scoop up Howl off the ground.
"Unhand me, Demon Woman!" Howl squeaked out, but then his face was smashed into Nushi's lovely red breasts.
I left Nushi and Howl to get acquainted, and I walked over to each girl. I kissed them both and told them I would be back tomorrow, and we could all talk then.
After I was done with the girls, I walked over to the horse face. Chey seemed to be doing a lot better and even looked relaxed.
"Feeling better?" I asked, and Chey nodded his horse head.
"Yes, and I am getting a full-body workout from the ground monster. I guess this is not that bad for a speedy recovery. Still, not something that I would like to go through often!" Chey declared, and I smiled.
"You will just have to stay away from Soup Can Portals from now on! When you get back to the Keep with the others, go find Mex. He was the previous Demon Lord, and he will help you get settled in," I explained, but that was only if he had made it out of the tower yet.
"Previous Demon Lord? Who is the new one?" Chey asked with an uneasy look on his face.
"I am," I said with a grin, and Chey's eyes went big.
"You are?! You're a Demon?!" Chey asked in surprise.
"I am the Demon Lord of this island, but I am not a Demon. It is a long story, and I am sure that Mex will love to tell you all about it," I explained, and Chey nodded, still looking surprised.
I got up and turned around to go join Nushi. She was waiting for me, but Howl had seemed to calm down now. This was surprising, considering just how much he complained about being fussed over.
"Where did you find such an adorable little friend? Do you think that I could have one?" Nushi asked.
I rolled my eyes and then tried to explain that Howl was actually a big blue wolf. That didn't help at all.
"Does this mean you are just a cute little wolfsee that I can carry around with me? Even though you can talk, I can't read your thoughts! It's the same as when I try to read yours, Zack!" Nushi said with more excitement about the news than I expected.
"I think that is because he is my partner, so he shares some of my abilities. Why do you seem so excited about not being able to read his mind?" I asked.
"When it is just you and me, I can pretend like I don't have this power. When I am around others, I read minds without knowing I am doing it. While I like to help everyone, I have to admit I missed the quiet of my room when I was locked up there," Nushi explained as she stroked Howl, who was remaining quiet.
"That makes sense. I couldn't imagine how loud it must be for you sometimes. Still, I can't figure out how you made Howl calm down? He said that he was a proud wolf that hated being called cute," I mentioned as we walked to Crater City.
We could have flown, but walking was nice.
"I am proud, but I also know that this Demon is far stronger than me, so fighting would be futile. I shall allow her to transport me this one time, but I am not some cute pet!" Howl growled but quieted back down as Nushi stroked his blue fur.
"Thank you for inviting me along. It is nice to get away from everyone, especially since we are all going to be cramped up in a boat soon," Nushi explained as we walked through the woods.
"I like spending time with you, so we are both winning, but I know what you mean. Still, I think that the girls will make the place a lot more spacious than it appears. I will also be setting up our ranch on the boat to help with the girls," I explained.
The place where I had found the bugs wasn't that far from Crater City. The trip only took us two hours, but I had spent the equivalent of four hours inside the rings.
We spent the entire time talking about things and problems. Stuff that we might face leaving the island inside and out of the ship.
Still, we both talked constantly till we reached the edge of the city. I had enjoyed the trip, but now I was starving, and the sun was going down.
"Do you think that we will be able to find a place to sleep and eat down there?" I asked, half-joking, but it did make Nushi laugh.
"Find a place? I don't think there is a single person here that wouldn't give you everything they own! I am excited to see how the place has changed! Look, the fighting tents are lit up! Maybe we can go after that?" Nushi asked me with excitement as we stood together at the crater's edge.
I could only smile at this beautiful and unique creature. I was what you would call the luckiest man in the world!
[Technically, you are the only Human in this world, so you would be the best in all things.] Harold informed me.
'You know, I could invite Libra back in!' I shot back in my mind, and Harold went silent.
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