A Road to the Capital of Longinquus Kingdom

Thud

The carriage rattled as it dipped down into the deviation of the planar surface that formed the beaten path. The resulting proprioception and racket were a disturbance to Morgan’s ears. The Longinquus Kingdom’s court mage massaged her temples. 

A simple solution to soothe the pressurized band that manifested over her head. The minor malady’s pathophysiology wasn’t rooted in an ill-intentioned curse or the cost of a steep incantation. Rather it was a simple headache brought about by handling some unruly children back at her home. That, and the anticipation of having to corral many more immature children during her visit to the court today.

Thud

The elf’s ears twitched. As the carriage lunged forward and halted. Forces of inertia clued the woman into the fact that her transportation had just stopped. Unexpected. Since the time that elapsed since the journey began was far too short for the distance, between her home and the capital, to be traveled. It would have at least taken twenty hours, and the burning sphere in the sky had not even traded places with its softer and blue counterpart.

Elucidating the truth was a simple matter. 

Especially for Morgan. 

As she had been through many more dangerous situations than having to make an unexpected stop on an unpaved road. Unafraid of possible bandits or vicious fauna, the elf closed her eyes and extended her senses beyond the interior of the carriage’s furnished cabin. The experienced mage stretched her senses into the open darkness beyond her normal senses. Vibrations, in the form of ringlets, akin to the small wave created on the surface of a lake after dropping a pebble in it, began to manifest in the nebulous aether that filled the elf’s mind’s eye. Then those rings crashed into one another. The dissonant sounds created by the constructive and destructive interference would have been harsh to a younger individual ears. Like Morgan’s son for instance. One of her children who tried his hands in sensory magic. Albeit with middling progress.

When will that boy find his calling?

A silent thought resounded in the mother of five’s head. It was a passing sentence in the face of the growing wave of stimuli emerging within the darkness. As a picture was finally beginning to form in the mage’s closed eyes. Of what was happening outside of her cabin. 

Then the edges of the white-haired elf’s were tugged down into a deep frown. For she saw the reason for the sudden stop of her carriage. To the side of the road was another carriage of similar design, a little smaller, that had veered off the side of the gravel path. Salvaging the sabotaged vessel would be an easy task for Morgan. In fact, with her talent in creation magic, she could conjure up and form a carriage that was exactly same as its former, undamaged appearance and at twice its current size. 

That was not the issue. 

Morgan would have mildly enjoyed flexing her magical muscle in front of a random flabbergasted noble. However, the occupant of the cabin of that carriage that was standing outside was not a random noble. Instead, it was a detestable man-child that nearly made the white-haired elf seethe. It was a weathered man of motley appearance, who possessed a voluminous ringed tail, much larger than her own youngest daughter’s tail, of brown coloration. 

An aged tanuki diplomat.

Morgan winced as she saw the discomforted expression on the man, who took the time to wipe beads of perspiration from above his brown brows, shift into a more pleasant one. For the white-haired elf’s driver, who was talking to the tanuki, had just pointed at her cabin. The kind and oblivious employee gestured and moved his lips. With words that the elf could hear as clear as day due to her sensory translocation, but she didn’t need to.

That diplomat’s, a vile child in his own right, eyes sparkled. As he realized that his current inconvenient circumstances, his carriage’s crash, were in fact an opportunity that he had been salivating at for a while.

He’s definitely going to insist on traveling with me. Even if I offer to fix his transportation and some additional riches. Probably with the excuse that it would be in our mutual interest.

Morgan opened her eyes, and the world shrank back to the interior of the cabin. The muscles in her body tensed as she waited for an infuriating visit from a maddening acquaintance.

Why couldn’t your carriage get stuck on another road. Yashima.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Tam Lin Estate

The Tam Lin family lived in a luxurious estate. One that had a vast amount of land to serve as the peripheral landscape, and an enormous mansion centered on the land. A result of the many exploits that their parents went on during their younger years. At least that is what the children were led to believe while growing up.

Begrudgingly, Nameless had to admit that he was born with a silver spoon in his mouth. Of course, being born into such a condition, made him adept at pleasing others.

Hmm~

“How do you always convince me to…”

Mmhh~

Thus, the young man hoped that whatever stern words, that Titania had for him, would be softened up by the firm and unremitting pressure of his hands on the circumference of her legs. Most likely, his efforts were not futile. As evidenced by the slight crooning that the wavy-haired knight failed to muffle. 

Currently. the two were in one of the manor’s living rooms. The older sister lied down with her back on the couch, and the younger brother sat up and faced his sister’s body. The former’s arms were angled, and his hands were pressed over the springy contour of  the latter’s musclebound legs.

This relaxing massage was a trick that the young man found would soothe the nerves and pains that his mother and oldest sister would experience throughout the day. A trick that the amateur masseuse reserved only for those two members of the family. 

Why not the others?

Frigg would spontaneously tease the twin brother now and again. About this method that he fell frequently fall back on. Usually, the twin sister would pop off her sandals, or even keep them on, as she shoved those eye-watering slabs towards his sensitive orifices. The vicious laugh afterwards was enough to inspire some ire within the annoyed brother. But it was usually swept under a mental rug. As the young man sometimes scrambled when he felt his body throb from the sudden attention. It was humiliating to be under such an assault, but if that bulge in his trousers was noticed...yea, he would just die. Nameless was very unlikely to give his aggravating twin sister a massage.

Meanwhile, Houseki was always a bit distant and waved off any of Nameless’s offers to comfort her tense legs or back. Even after a long day of training and recon work. Activities that the brother wasn’t completely familiar with, but he believed entailed long moments of unmoving observation, broken by bursts of movement to better reposition oneself. Either to get a better vantage point on a mobile subject of interest or to evade their approaching awareness. A shame really. Nameless was of the mind that, in his family, the oni might have been the one that most needed the knots in her body to be untwined, and he would have been happy to do so.

As for the younger sister Nahla, massaging her light brown feet, and tending to those energetically wiggling toes. Yea. That was not going to happen. Nameless was comfortable in being able to control the more primal parts of his mind around his family. The two women that the young man did offer massages to, Morgan and Titania, were both old enough and had taken care of him that the respect he possessed for them was more than enough to subdue any unwanted desires. Regardless, the middle child didn’t want any undesirable arousal to taint the relationship with his kind cat girl sibling.

Thus, Nameless was tending to Titania’s hot legs and feet with all the physical effort that he could muster. As he was unlikely to do it to anyone else today. Considering that their mother was out for the next few days, and it was highly unlikely that the golem Gloriana would request for the application of physical pressure to her solid parts from her creator’s son.

“You should really watch how long you stand on your legs. Standing in one place for too long just isn’t good for the sanguine circuits down there.”

Nameless compressed the bundles of hot sinew. The young man was not of a feeble build. He was quite muscled for a cleric. Regardless, he couldn’t help but notice the immense heat that seeped out from Titania’s lower extremities. Pillars of tissue that were now laid bare. Just moments ago, she had pulled up her dark grey trousers and pried off her stuffy boots and moist socks.

“Yea. Maybe I’ll laze my ass off like you. Lying in bed and complaining about sleep.”

Titania snorted. Any derisive tincture to the noise was attenuated by the way that the muscular elf’s long elf-like ears wiggled. Even after twenty plus years, Nameless was still not desensitized to endearing idle movement. 

“You never know. Maybe give it a try. Loosen up a little. You’ll be able to work comfortably in service of the kingdom longer that way.”

Nameless pressed the pads of his thumbs into his older sister’s skin. The supple texture was made pliable by the pulsing pressure of the younger brother’s fingers. Digits that earnestly tried their best to pulp the underlying tissue. To tug apart any interwoven knots and kinks formed from use and misuse. He circled his hands and trailed down the calf. Silence soon supplanted the small conversation that the two had. 

The absence of noise, apart from the occasional creaks of the aged manor, was not an uncommon effect of Nameless’s magic touch. The silence was usually soothing for both parties...just not now. For the brother still felt the same level of unease when his older sister asked him to come to this private location. 

They were eye level. Empathetic statements were shared, and small topics exchanged.

Yet, there was this tension in the air. That one could cut with a knife. Nameless almost wished there was some magic subsystem that a mage could utilize to massage out all the kinks and quirks that made the air heavy. Like how he pressed his hands and body into the firm beef of his sister’s leg and feet. Although, such an entertaining train of thought was eventually tinged by Nameless’s own pessimistic take on reality.

Even if there was such a system…would I even be able to use it?

The young man reflected on this thought, between each slide of his thumb against Titania’s twitching instep. His nostrils casually flared, an involuntary response by his body, to the nearly indiscernible elements that coated the knight’s foot. Such details did not escape the young man’s attention…exactly because of his certain proclivities. 

Heck…would I even be able to learn it?

First it was one hand, and now it was two pressed against the broad sole. Ridges of the instep’s flesh moved like a turbulent oceanic tide under Nameless’s firm and circling caress. Each pulse of his thumb’s pressure pulled those wrinkles tight. Emphasizing their depth on the well-trodden foot’s underside. Until those lines diminished as it reached the solidified surface of the knight’s ball and heels. The gradation in texture was a tactile bliss for the young man. All it would take was a simple closure of his eyelids and he could drift off into a taboo dream. 

He wouldn’t.

This was his sister. This massage served the purpose of proactively ameliorating whatever fire that the self-disciplined woman had to levy at him. This was not an outlet to desires that were barely spoken. 

It was merely Nameless taking advantage of his predilections. A fetish that gave rise to his natural technique in giving relaxing massages. The young man interpreted the shifts of Titania’s leg, which was positioned so that it ended just before his lap, as affirmations of his success. The growing moisture along his palm was a signal of his efforts. Although, whether that briny solution beaded from his working muscles, or Titania’s perspiring soles, was still an uncertainty for the younger brother.

Very unlike his certainty when it came to his plateauing talent when it came to magic.

Such worries would be so insignificant if he were just that insignificant in stature. 

Standing on a couch, barely even reaching an inch in height, the younger brother would have to lean back to even try and glance at the top of his eldest sister’s toes. At that tiny size, the foot massage would take an entirely different meaning for Nameless. Those wavy ridges of rubber would be far above his head. The whitened and abrasive surface of the knight’s heel would directly face him. His little hands could punch, and his body could ram, but would the relaxing giantess even notice the disturbance on the bottommost part of her body? Or would he just register as an irritation. An itch on the beguiling knight’s sole and cause her to shift position. To bring the leaning building of funky foot down towards the awestruck gnat. With a village-shattering slam that would unknowingly engulf Titania’s little brother’s body in the flesh of her sole. 

Where would he end up under Titania? Ground underneath a concrete heel? Forced into a contorted circle along the whorls of the ball of her foot. Or engulfed by the warm wrinkles of her instep? Feeling the rush of gushing sanguine pulse through her skin as the underlying sinew strummed through fascia. A mere flex of the knight’s foot would invite the beady sweat, that saturated her foot’s dusty underside, to collect and concentrate as a streaming hot wash over Nameless’s body. Softening his body up, as the overpowering might of the sole engulfed him. The younger brother would be lost between the clumps of torn and drenched from Titania’s insole, that got stuck as wet lint on the bottom meat. Each of Nameless’s breath, tainted by the powerful stench of vinegar and dirt would contaminate his—

“Nameless…”

The young man tried to shuffle back as he felt his sister’s posture shift. Titania sat up and leaned forward, she pushed her arms out and ahead. As a result, pushing the curve of her breasts into prominence under her tunic, and pushed the end of her foot’s underside perilously close to a dangerous triangle formed by Nameless’s thighs. The young man gulped for more reason than one. The first reason, he found his attempt to reposition himself thwarted by the arm of the couch.

“…What have you been doing these past days?”

The other reason was the conversation, that he dreaded, had just begun.

“You know…making gradual progress. The same as the past couple weeks.”

Nameless mustered up a response. His hands moved away from his older sister’s sole.

“What exactly?”

Titania was searching. Poking and prodding her younger brother to see if he had taken the initiative that his other siblings were. Frigg trailblazing through her research in Enchantment magic and making a name for herself in the field. Houseki and Nahla both pursuing a passing grade in their respective examinations in their desired profession’s licensing exam. All three building up a resume for whatever position in life they wanted. Ranging from becoming an adventurer like their parents, when they were younger, or a respectable seated position in the kingdom’s government like Titania was right now.

“I’ve been reading and going through practical problems related to fields that branch out from cleric work.”

Nameless hoped that he didn’t stumble in his speech. Even after all these years, the brother still found Titania’s ability to effectively comport herself as an imposing figure as intimidating as that first time, she pushed him down and accidentally knocked him out. The older sister having underestimated her strength when they were 10 and 5 years old respectively. Even after the swelling cycle of hormones that puberty ushered, the difference in physical effort between the two remained, even increased, due to the training and exercise that the diligent took in improving her athleticism and combat ability.

“And what else?”

Furthermore, it didn’t help that it wasn’t just inverse-wave haired woman’s words that were poking and prodding Nameless’s psyche. 

“Uhm…”

There was a mental and physical assault on the younger brother, by his older sister’s unconsciously nearing foot. Those fanning toes and plump soles, and the well-manicured and unpainted toenails, which served as five effective crowns on the creamy assemblage of sinuous muscle, tendons, fascia, and bones, exemplified the utilitarian style that Titania came to embody in her daily life.

There was no time for wasted effort. Such trivialities only deserved to be crushed under a grinding heel.

“Nameless. Please tell me there is an else. What you’re telling me is no different than what last year. Sure, you had a failure in the past, but how long are you going to be in this dug-up rut?”

Nameless could feel his throat swell up. The young man knew that he had no excuse, but how was he supposed to say that he didn’t know. That he feared making another mistake. That the fire that once lit his spirits and supposed passion seemed to have fizzled out a long time ago. So scattered were those embers that he doubted the flames that created them ever existed. But verbalizing that would very much be an excuse to Nameless. And if it was truly the case in the perception of his family members, then the young man was certain that he would sink down once more. That couldn’t happen now. Especially when he had just got back to making that slow crawl upwards.

I just need time…time without the stress of everyone’s judgement. But I can’t just ask that…

...

...

Titania didn’t possess the knowledge to read minds. Nameless was happy for that. The privacy of his thoughts was a comfort to him. Even if the mere bobbing of his head, which he hoped was interpreted by the knight as a nod and not a reactive jerk to her confrontational words, might have inspired more frustration within the older sister who was just trying to help.

“Okay. Look. I can’t always help you or give you options of how to go forward.”

Nameless’s eyes widened as he saw his older sister’s thighs bulge. By this point, the anxious man was under the suspicion that his oblivious sister was so focused on the conversation, that she was about to accidentally shove her bare foot over his lap and onto his abdomen. His mind prepared for that sinful merging of heat. Of an unforgiving pressure massaging his sensitive nerves through his shirt after the disastrous collision.

Something that he could only fantasize about his past year, being done to him by other women. After he’s been cooped up focusing on his failing studies.

“And Mom is right. It doesn’t help that you’re spending every day either in these dark hallways or behind your closed door. It’s messing with your brain.”

He had misjudged. As the wrinkles of Titania’s trouser shifted and she swung her legs down to the floor. The knight kicked her legs out and pulled the grounded boots closer to her now sitting posture.

“So please, not for our sake, but for your own. Take mom’s advice and head out. Get out and do something else. Something relaxing even. To balance out all the stress you’ve been pelting yourself with.”

Titania lifted her feet, picked up the socks that hung over the rim of her boots, tugged them past her wriggling digits and past her foot, before shoving each foot through the throat of her respective boots. If the young man wasn’t so rattled by stress, then he might have imagined another woman doing that. And that woman shoving her foot down his throat instead of the inner walls of the stuffy footwear.

Instead, Nameless felt a reassuring pressure on his shoulder. His older sister was gently patting him.

“We just don’t want you to burn out and ruin your life. Okay.”

The young man looked at his older sister and saw her facial features soften for the first time today. Then she stood up from the couch and patted the back of her tunic.

“Got it Nameless. I must go see my regiment, but when I’m back I expect to see you gone.”

Nameless sighed deeply and watched as his sister began to walk away.

“Yea. Titania. I’ll do that. I’ll head out in an hour or two after I get things sorted in my room.”

Finally, the tension wheezed out of the room. Titania stopped at the entrance of the living room. The athletic half-elf then turned and gave a slight smile at her brother.

“Wonderful, and who knows, maybe when we see each other next time I won’t be calling you Nameless anymore.”

Titania punctuated with a teasing winked and then left the living room. Her steps thudded in the distance until the brother could no longer hear them. Then he stood up and made his way back to his room. 

For what might have been the final time for today.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Nameless exhaled as he looked at his room up and down. The papers, ajar desk, food stains, and clothes lying on the floor had been cleaned up. It took a couple hours, but he was certain that if anyone came into the room, even their servant Gloriana, then they would be convinced that he left the house. 

Fresh air. Maybe that would be good for someone else, but I’ve already wasted too much time. I just need to recenter myself without anyone disturbing me.

One would think that it would be as simple as asking his family to do so…but that was not the case. 

Both Titania and Morgan would agree at first. But they would progressively become more overbearing and intrude into the young man’s space more frequently. It would only get worse the more that they notice perceived deficiencies in his daily schedule, and then they would start offering advice and recommendations. Offers that will soon turn into demands and recommendations that will soon turn into orders. Especially with Titania involved.

Meanwhile, his twin sister Frigg would most likely be dismissive of him whenever the two crossed paths…but…the brother was confident she would leave him alone. Probably because she had more important things to do than bullying her failure of a brother. Regardless, those happenstance encounters will still do quite a lot of damage to his fragile and still recovering ego.

Nahla. Nameless loved that cat girl, but she could be too clingy for her own good. He was sure that a couple hours of his day would be devoted to her antics or trying to avoid the young woman brimming with vitality.

Houseki. Actually, she would probably be the only one to abide by his request.

Ahh…wait…I should probably check to see if I didn’t accidentally move that while cleaning up my room.

If Nameless was without sin, then maybe he would have been less burdened by his inability to reach the same status as his twin sister. Or move forward in life like the other members of his family. However, there was a small, physical reminder of one of the young man’s insecurities that lay tucked behind a stack of books in his bookshelf.

“Ah…there it is.”

He said as he pulled out the dusty beginner’s tome and saw the brown loafers. One of slight contour, shape, and form that it would never have fit just right on Nameless’s own foot. 

As it was not his.

It was Morgan’s loafer.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Puberty was a tough time for the young lad. Growing pains and discovering a new lubricious side of yourself. It was especially tough without any parental figures around to guide someone through their developing sexuality. Unfortunately for Nameless, his father had already passed away a long time ago, and the kingdom was going through a drought at the time. So, his mother was barely present at home as the kingdom needed her abilities and knowledge. Even when the ageless elf was able to return home, those days she would usually be knocked out under the covers of her bed.

Yup. 

Back then Titania and Frigg were the de facto parents of the household. A compliant Houseki and eager Nahla were more than happy to follow their house rules. While Nameless tried to grapple with his newfound sexual desires.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In the present, the young man held the loafer in his gaze. He didn’t know why, and still couldn’t fathom what possessed him, maybe his father was the same, but the strongest of erections sprouted from his crotch one summer morning. As he looked at the ripe loafer that his mother had kicked off in the living room before she went off to her bedroom. Back then. There they laid. Forgotten. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Shoes were something stinky when Nameless was a child. Then tools to be used to protect your feet and convey your status when Nameless began his rudimentary years in general education. But footwear  became something else to the growing teenager. Whose budding arousal saw the objects as a conduit for dark fantasies that crawled around like parasites in his head. Consuming each waking minute that the young Nameless had. As he more frequently imagined himself as a shrunken person. 

Those loafers were just objects lying in the living room in Nameless’s eyes. They didn’t even register to him as his mother’s possessions. Rather the young man imagined that they belonged to the feet of some of the other woman or girl that he crossed by in the academy’s hallways. He stuck his nose, took a deep whiff, and imagined himself as a tiny. 

...

The open entrance would loom above, and the trepidatious adventurer’s first steps would lead to an accidental trip and then a roll into the abyssal guts of the cavernous loafer. Its insides mired by rivulets of cloudy sweat and billowing steam. Byproducts of a predatory foot that had temporarily vacated. But it would return, and underneath those warping wrinkles was a little adventurer snack. To be bent and conformed along the waves of gluttonous wrinkles.

...

Young Nameless’s post-ejaculation regret came after his sudden eruption. That white ooze arced up and splashed against the exterior of the loafers. Soaking thoroughly through them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ugh…I can’t believe that I still haven’t found the time or opportunity to get rid of them.

It had been over a decade. Either a lapse of memory, a cluttered day, or the watchful eye of the Tam Lin Family’s servant, and one of their mother’s oldest creations, Gloriana had gotten in the way of Nameless disposing of the footwear. It was fortunate that back when the young man first had a wet dream, he had realized that the golem scanned his laundry, fabrics, gifts, and trash regularly. For any possible possessions that might have been placed as a means to harm any of Morgan’s family member. A bit of an invasion of privacy, but an understandable one…considering how Nameless’s father had met his end...

...

...

Would my sexual essence still be soaked in these loafers after so long?

The young man ducked his head into the bookshelf. Then he gave an inquisitive sniff of the aged footwear. Not out of any fetishistic drive, but out of aggravation of still having this embarrassing piece of evidence from his childhood past. The musk was mostly aired out, but what had remained was left to age into a tender drink that roasted Nameless’s nostrils with its unique aroma. It was almost too gentle of a smell then what he recalled from when he was experiencing puberty.

I don’t even know if Gloriana would be able to tell if this is mom’s shoes and connect it with—

“Hey brother! What are you looking for in there?”

Ahhh!!

Nameless yelped as he quickly turned around and pushed his back against his bookshelf. The young man’s eyes bulged, and his ears rung from the scratchy voice of his younger sister. For Nahla, had snuck up on her brother and inappropriately yelled out her question and unconventional greeting. The cat girl was not alone. 

While Nameless rubbed one hand against his violated ear, protecting his bruised ear drum from Nahla’s ensuing shrill laughter, he saw Houseki at the edge of his door. The dark-haired oni’s gamine figure hugged against the frame of the entrance; one arm stretched out above her head. A delighted half-grin was plastered on her face. 

Well, Nameless was happy that his younger sisters were enjoying themselves…even if it was at the expense of his hearing.

“Come on Nahla. Don’t bother brother like that. I’m sure that you’re old enough to know that it’s not proper to be too obtuse. What would your party members think when you join your first adventurer’s group?”

The older brother’s hands fumbled behind his back. As he tried to insert the loafers back to the secure and hidden space. Fortunately, his suspicious actions didn’t seem to merit the oni and cat girl’s notice. Or it did, but there were plenty of more benign things that Nameless would have reason to hide, that the pair of sisters had no reason to investigate further.

“Hmm~ well mom always said that I should go shoe shopping with her?”

Nahla pouted and began to rock on her tanned feet. Nameless could have sworn that she was kicking up a miniature storm of dust around those meaty appendages, but it would have been rude to continue staring.

“That too. Honestly, I’m kind of curious how they’ll react to your fashion sense.”

Houseki casually remarked about Nahla current attire. Since Nameless last saw her the dark-skinned sister had changed out of her nightgown and into a dress…that she personally customized. A dress that had been clipped and trimmed into a two-part outfit. A loose shirt that hugged her torso and the bottom end of a dress that was more akin to a medium-sized skirt. The flowing frills ending around her knees.

I…I don’t think I can feel the loafers anymore. They must be back in place.

“Hah! They’ll be envious of my functional conventionalism! That is if they aren’t too busy being wowed by the best Paladin in Kingdom— Ah! Hey! Nameless! Why are you pulling me!”

The brother relaxed once he was certain that his dirty little secret was hidden away. He then walked away from the bookcase and roped an arm around his shorter sister. With a little force on Nameless’s part, the pair of siblings walked back to his room’s entrance.

“Yea! Yea! Mom and the rest of us are proud to know that at least one of us is going to be an adventurer. But how about you try to meet the middle ground with your brother and wear some stirrups. I hear that there are some disgusting parasites that try to burrow themselves into the soles of strong adventurers.”

Nameless smirked and scratched the top of Nahla’s scalp and the back of her ears.

“Hey! Watch it! Or it’ll be your face glued to the bottom of my foot.”

Nahla punched the Nameless’s side. The older brother recoiled and gave a playful choke of fabricated pain. 

“Mmh~ Yea Nahla. I agree with brother. Wearing stirrups will do you some good. Making and wearing my own tabi socks has done wonders for my performance as a scout apprentice. The proper footwear can make you steps lighter, stronger, and give you that extra oomph.”

This time the young man was sure that a dense cloud had puffed up from the stale pair of sewn socks. The oni craned her neck down and looked down at the impact that her foot made on the floor. The adopted sibling’s pale face flushed as she realized that her socks could go through the wash.

Why does my room always end up with so much dust?

Not that Nameless was complaining. He was actually quite fond of dust. As it gave him a focus for his fantasies. A minuscule object that he could envision himself as. Like now. If the brother were small. Small enough to not even be noticed by the tallest and shortest member of the family as they talked. 

Houseki and Nahla having arrived at Nameless’s room. To bid him farewell after Titania told them that he was heading out on a journey before she left for work. But then they see that no one was in the cleaned room and assumed their brother had already hit the road. So, they decide to talk a little before heading back to their own devices. Both were unaware that their dear brother had now found himself at half an inch in size. And he was stuck between their gigantic figures that stretched up into the sky. Their faces would be so far in the heavens that they might as well be deities worshipped by some civilizations. And Nameless would be but a minuscule subject beneath their notice. A tiny forced to weather the torrential displacement of atmosphere caused by the most subtle of their movements. Nahla’s cracking brown toes would boom in the little brother’s eardrums like a crashing forest, and Houseki’s pumping socked foot would bring about a tremendous tremor. It would only be a matter of moments before the air became dense with the sister’s godly aroma. Such that each gagging inhalation would be saturated the sweat that evaporated from those warm and living buildings of intricate muscle they called feet. Houseki and Nahla’s conversation would be as loud as a booming storm. The casual conversation’s meaning would be supplanted by the apocalyptic events that it signaled to the shrunken brother. Which oppressive sole would inch a bit too close to him? Which wriggling set of toes would displace a current that would make him lose his footing? Which looming planar of wrinkled skin would cast a shadow over him? The bottom of a tanned cat girl’s foot that was coated in dirt, grass, and whatever else was merged within those hot recesses by a world of pressure? The bottom of a pale oni’s black tabi sock, which was soaked in dried sweat and had probably fermented into a dominating foot funk that just seeped through the sewn? 

Some questions were better left unanswered. So Nameless returned from his inner thoughts and back into reality.

“Yea. I’ll try and get you some footwear when I get back Nahla.”

Nameless patted the cat girl’s exposed tan shoulder. 

“So, you really are leaving. Do you want either of us to come?”

Nahla cocked her head. Then she tried and failed to suppress a devious smile. As the siblings knew that the youngest of them had plenty of stuff that she had to do at home before her licensing exam with the Adventurer’s Guild in a few months.

“Nah! But I’ll let you all know ahead of time when I’ll be coming back with a letter.”

Nameless said as he reached out and picked up a filled bag that was placed on his dresser. He then motioned for them to walk out of his room with him.

“Well, if you ever need anything, then let us know. Mom or Frigg could help, and I might be on a training mission in the area. And if you are in any danger just rip an emergency scroll open and contact us.”

Houseki said as she stood next to her brother. With such a small distance between the two of them, it was readily apparent to the older brother just how much taller his adopted sister was. Not counting the tips of her horns…it was nearly a head’s length. It really made Houseki seem that much more reliable.

“Yea. I’ll do just that.”

Nameless nodded. The trio of siblings talked for a few more minutes before the sisters slowly made their way back to their rooms. The cautious brother walked towards the house’s exit for a few minutes. Nameless’s eyes darted to his periphery several times. To make sure that Houseki and Nahla hadn’t decided to follow him as he made way out of his home and on the first leg of his journey. 

Once he was certain that he wasn’t under anyone’s watchful gaze, the brother turned and began to swiftly rush back to the insides of their home. In case the golem Gloriana was making her rounds and deviated from her normal routine, Nameless made sure to look both ways before a turn. Why was he doing this instead of leaving the mansion to go on a trip outside like Titania and his mom wanted?

That was because for the first time in months the overbearing figures were both out of the house. It was also due to Frigg, Houseki, and Nahla being occupied with their own activities and were unlikely to bother him. Especially since most, if not all, were under the impression that he was out on the road. And Nameless had finally outlined Gloriana’s entire schedule of duties and route that she routinely traversed through the mansion for the day.

Nameless didn’t plan to follow Morgan or Titania’s advice. 

True. They both cared for him, but they have been wrong in the past. There was a better way for the young man to get out of his rut, than just fresh air and world experiences, deep within the mansion. Especially since his mother and sister’s advice carried its own risks. 

No.

Unbeknownst to his mother, the son had found out what was in the basement. Nameless had found out what was in the corridor that she sealed off from the rest of the family. 

In the smallest room, that the golem servant Gloriana was far and away from during the 13th hour of the 6th day of the week, was a lamp. Not a lamp that shined light. Rather a container of sorts. The priceless artifact that his mother acquired during the expedition that she picked up Houseki.

And within that container…was a genie. A genie that could grant wishes.

Nameless reached the only stairs in the house that led to the basement and began to descend the steps. 

While on the other side of the mansion. The young man was completely unaware that the loafers that he thought he snuck back into impromptu compartment of his bookshelf, had fallen to the side of the bookcase.

In plain view.