One Piece: Wild Hunt

Chapter 44: Improv

Without considering his response, Thomas replied, "Even," while Caenis, Astolfo, and Atalanta all replied, "Odd," at nearly the same time.

Adopting a slightly apologetic expression, Benienma removed her hand from the cup, muttering, "Forgive me, Master..." as she revealed the sum of the die to be odd.

As it didn't really make a difference, Thomas shrugged his shoulders, responding, "It's no big deal," before sitting back to observe the rest of the round. He was technically the only man participating in the game, so he benefitted more from losing than winning.

Shaking up the die a second time, Benienma questioned, "Odd or even?" prompting everyone to respond, "Odds," simultaneously. This repeated six more times, causing Thomas to suspect foul play until Atalanta made the first mistake, choosing odd when the total was even. In the subsequent match, Caenis didn't even wait for Benienma to ask, slamming the table in front of them as she shouted, "Odds...!" with a victorious grin.

Though she had been planning to let Caenis give her response first, Astolfo's expression morphed into a frown when she heard the bronze-skinned woman's choice. She was certain the result was even, so Caenis had either gotten lucky or intentionally thrown the match to ensure she would be among the candidates to be chosen for a command...

Demonstrating that Astolfo's intuition was correct, Benienma revealed the result to be even. Instead of appearing excited, however, Caenis adopted a grimace, muttering, "Bullshit..." before slumping back onto the sofa and crossing her arms. The latter hated losing, and the thought of being able to tell everyone else what to do excited her. In other words, she had just gotten 'lucky' to guess incorrectly.

Despite realizing that Caenis hadn't done anything wrong, Astolfo didn't want to reward her, stating, "Well, since I won, that makes me the Master. As for my command...how about we start things off tame? Atalanta, you must let MaI mean, you must allow Tom to use your lap as a pillow. He is always giving you headpats, so this is your chance to return the favor."

Without moving from her spot on the floor, Atalanta patted her thighs as she said, "I don't mind," in a curt tone. A thigh pillow was a lot tamer than what she was expecting, so she didn't even bat an eye as Thomas rose from the sofa and spread his body across the ground, culminating in his head coming to rest on her lap. Instead, she began combing her fingers through his hair, warning, "Don't get too comfortable. If you fall asleep, it will make things awkward for everyone."

Instead of responding to Atalanta's words with his own, Thomas just smiled before closing his eyes and enjoying the rare opportunity. Atalanta was one of the girls he had all but given up on as, without some kind of gift from Heaven or, far more likely, one from Hell(Zelretch), he couldn't imagine beating her in a footrace. She was his fastest Servant in terms of raw Agility, and she would only get faster as she Ascended...

Just as Thomas was beginning to feel like he might actually doze off, Astolfo said, "That should be enough for a first-round penalty command. As we progress into the later rounds, we can extend the time up to seven minutes."

Furrowing her brows, Atalanta looked like she wanted to say something but ultimately kept silent as Thomas rose to a seated position, remaining on the floor instead of returning to the sofa. He was feeling a little tipsy after several drinks, so he didn't feel like moving back and forward between the couch and floor if it turned out his next penalty also involved Atalanta.

Misinterpreting Thomas's thoughts, a faint smile adorned Atalanta's face as she moved to sit next to him. She didn't lean against him or anything, but her action was overt enough that even Thomas noticed it, prompting him to raise his brows slightly.

Realizing that her Master wasn't returning to the couch, Benienma began the second round. This time, Thomas managed to endure until the fourth set of rolls, but that was only because he waited for the others to respond before giving his answer. Caenis eventually called him out for it, however, so he was forced to play 'fairly' for fear of being labeled indecisive and a coward...

After a startling twenty-three rolls, Caenis emerged as the round's victor, jumping to her feet and pumping her fist as she shouted, "Fuck yeah! You little shits are in for it now...!"

Pointing to Atalanta, Caenis's expression revealed a hint of the 'tyrant' she was known to be in her previous life as she declared, "Your haughtiness pisses me off. Even with cat ears and a tail, you act like you're better than everyone else. For the next seven minutes, I want to see you acting like a cat in heat."

Narrowing her eyes, Atalanta looked like she wanted to protest but didn't. Instead, she looked toward Thomas for several seconds before suddenly leaning her head against him and nuzzling his arm. However, before she could continue the act, Caenis promptly pointed out, "I've never seen a cat that wears clothes..."

"Caenis..."

Disproving of Caenis's behavior, Thomas frowned as he asserted, "You're taking things too far..."

Blinking in surprise, Caenis responded with a confused "Huh?" before furrowing her brows deeply as she added, "It's just acting like a cat for a few minutes. I'm not asking her to impale herself on your dick or anything. Besides, Astolfo mentioned that stripping was fair game. I haven't broken any rules, so don't look at me like that..."

Before Thomas could offer a counterargument, Atalanta surprised him by saying, "It's fine." Then, without another word, she allowed the clothes to dematerialize from her body, revealing her lithe and athletic frame in all its naked glory. There wasn't an ounce of fat anywhere on her petite frame, but what truly surprised Thomas was her rather prominent patch of green and wheat-colored pubes. Like the hair atop her head, it grew wild, free, and much thicker than the average woman...

While Thomas entered a momentary daze, Atalanta suddenly got on all fours, crawling across his lap and rubbing against him as a dull, almost mechanical "Nyaa..." emanated from her throat. When he failed to pet her, she doubled back and lowered her head, nuzzling his hand until Thomas raised it. Then, like an actual cat, she rubbed against his hand, crawling across his lap a second time before repeating the process.

Though most girls in her position would have phoned it in, Atalanta was like an actual cat, waiting until Thomas had caressed her several times before she began 'kneading,' focusing on a very specific area of his body. A few seconds later, she brought her face to his bulge, tentatively sniffing it for several seconds before nuzzling against it with her face and nose...

Freeing Thomas from his stupor, Atalanta smacked him in the face with the tip of her tail, prompting him to resume petting her. Her back would arch like an actual cat whenever he caressed near the base of her tail, so Thomas instinctually focused on that area, causing her to lower her head and raise her butt. If he didn't know she was capable of behaving like a perfectly ordinary, albeit aloof woman, Thomas would have thought she was genuinely possessed by a cat...

Since Caenis wasn't keeping track, Astolfo counted the milliseconds until seven minutes had passed, shouting, "Okay, that's enough..!" the moment time was up.

As if a switch had been flipped inside her brain, Atalanta raised her face from Thomas's crotch and materialized her usual outfit before returning to her position at his side, completely stone-faced. A hint of red colored her cheeks, but as she had downed a whopping eight pints of wine, the blush had been present even before she started behaving like a cat.

Clicking her tongue, Caenis crossed her arms and muttered, "Just when it was starting to get good..."

Ignoring her newly acquired nemesis's remark, Astolfo adopted a forced smile as she prompted Benienma to begin the third round. This time, she sped things up considerably by intentionally calling the wrong result on the very first roll. What she never anticipated was Atalanta inadvertently doing the same, promptly pitting Caenis and Thomas against one another.

Adopting a toothy grin, Caenis asked, "Would you rather I get the next roll correct or incorrect? After rubbing her face and nose against your dick for a few minutes, I imagine our little feline friend is eager to continue where you left off..."

Though she furrowed her brows, Atalanta didn't refute Caenis's claim. If it were just her and Thomas present, she would have taken their little play 'a lot' further. Not the furthest it could have gone, but she certainly wouldn't have stopped at just sniffing him. She could smell Thomas's arousal even at a distance; nuzzling against him directly had the tip of her tail twitching in 'frustration.'

Returning a smile, Thomas replied, "I don't know what kind of command I would issue, but I would rather you didn't just let me win. Let's play things out and see how they go."

Shrugging her shoulders, Caenis responded with a lazy, "Suit yourself..." before shifting her attention to Benienma. However, when the latter was finished mixing up the dice, she remained silent, allowing Thomas to call out, "Odds." This could be seen as 'letting' Thomas win, but, as it was the only way he stood a chance at victory, Caenis regarded it as leveling the playing field.

Hearing her Master's reply, the tensions in Benienma's body waned, her head and shoulders slumping as she reluctantly revealed the sum to be even. She allowed herself to think, albeit for a brief moment, that Thomas might be able to secure a victory.

Contrasting Benienma's reaction, Caenis adopted a mischievous grin as she remarked, "Looks like your luck held out. As for your command..."

Since she could tell Atalanta 'wanted' to continue, Caenis dismissed that idea, shifting her attention to Astolfo as she mused, "Why don't you and Astolfo here have a dick measuring contest? You've both changed a lot in the past year. This is a good opportunity to compare your growth..."

Though Thomas furrowed his brows slightly, Astolfo's expression became wide-eyed and full of excitement. She was starting to believe that Caenis had forgotten their little 'deal,' so a mixture of relief and unbridled nerves washed over her as she bounced to her feet and exclaimed, "Let's do it...!"

Exhaling a faint sight through his nose, Thomas suppressed his inhibitions and pushed himself to his feet. It wasn't like this was the first time he was seeing someone else's dick, so, after a moment of hesitation, he removed his belt and dropped his trousers.

Since she was wearing a skirt, Astolfo only had to remove a pair of black lace panties, tossing them to the side before staring Thomas directly in the eye and asking, "Are you ready...?" with a nervous quiver in her voice. In response, Thomas looked to Benienma, prompting the petite sparrow to exhale a slightly exasperated sigh before turning around.

With Benienma facing away, Thomas removed his boxers, revealing his fully erect cock. It hadn't been that long since Atalanta's little 'play,' so he was rock hard despite his efforts to calm down using a discreet breathing technique.

Seeing how much Thomas had 'grown' over the past year, Astolfo's eyes widened as she swallowed audibly. He had to be around 24-25cm, so her voice squeaked slightly as she remarked, "It looks like you've got me beat by around twenty-five centimeters..."

Before Thomas's brain could process the meaning of her words, Astolfo raised the hem of her skirt to reveal a perfectly smooth, visibly glistening slit. She had followed through on her plan of having Asclepius change her gender and had spent nearly a year as a bonafide female.

Taking advantage of Thomas's stupor, Astolfo raised her arms over her head and let her clothes dematerialize, revealing a lithe, athletic frame not all that dissimilar to Atalanta's. Her breasts couldn't even pass the marker for a B-Cup, but they were clearly the mammaries of a female as she struck a pose, provided a playful wink, and squeaked, "S-Surprise~!"

...

..

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(A/N: And then they fuhad a very long and meaningful chat.)