Wandering Eyes

It was about time she did something like this. The woman had finally taken up her captain's sister on a bathhouse day after the Cathy swung by her home and nagged her incessantly, refusing to leave until Eve said yes. While several expletives were thrown at the noble, she ultimately succumbed when Catherine launched into a vivid description of the place. Hopefully it matched up to the high bar Cathy set. Eve secretly admitted it would probably do her some good, considering the rigors of being a Magic Knight in this day and age. Not to mention that brat of hers still running about like a chicken with its head cut off. The magic knight sighed; she could use a tonic right about now.

Upon reaching the bathhouse, she ogled its opulent exterior, made of marble and other materials while done in the form of a villa, placed well away from the city; though its skyline was visible in the distance. It was hard not to imagine the money flowing into this place, nor the type of people who frequented it. "Figure." Taking a deep breath, Eve walked inside, navigating until she found the main desk. After giving Catherine's name (since she reserved the spot), Eve was directed to the changing room, where she found a bathrobe and towel waiting for her, each embroidered with a pretty design and made of a plush material. She languidly wondered how much they cost, before deciding she didn't want to know. Once changed, she made her way out to the bathing springs, finding Catherine already soaking alongside her research partner.

Jeanne turned at the sound of Eve's footsteps. "You made it!!" she rose from the water before tackle hugging the magic knight. Catherine clapped. "I thought you were going to bail on us," Cathy said cheekily.

"And miss out on all-expenses paid trip like this? Hell no," Eve smirked. She would be towed into the bathing spring by Jeanne before setting up shop on the near side, back facing the wall. The woman would be lying if she didn't say she melted upon touching the gently heated water. All of her aching and pains disappeared, Eve sinking further until only her face and chin were visible.

Her smirk deepened. "I think I'm hooked."

Catherine laughed. "After only a couple minutes? You need to treat yourself more."

## Don't Disturb Our Operation

The waters of this bath house were drawn from the reservoir that the entire resort was built upon; it was one of the few mountainous reservoirs in the Noble Region of Clover which made it one of the most renown resorts in the entirety of Clover. It was frequented by nobles, and in some cases, royalty. The bath itself was decorated by statues and nobility, ancient heroes, and even a statue of the Great King Guthrie whose monument sat perched on the top of a towering wall that separated the male’s bathes from the females. It not only served as a commemoration to the royal line, but as a reminder for the sexes to refrain in any nefarious activities.
There were rumors that the statue was actually a surveillance system that was used to detect people peeping from atop the wall, however, Iolo Goch was no amateur when it came to peeping. To use the top of a wall would be the quickest way to be spotted, and thereby the quickest way to end any type of fun.

No, in all his time in coming to this resort, Iolo had dedicated several years of hard work to finding perhaps the most secretive passageway; mainly because it didn’t exist until recently. Through sheer hard work and effort, with a little help from his magic, Iolo had created a small passageway from the men’s locker room, to the woman’s changing area into another locker. From there, he had crafted a tiny, little room that allowed them to peep from what many would assume to be nothing but a wall. Yet, Iolo had transformed the inside of the wall into an area for himself. Well, an area for himself and another.

Iolo pressed his eye up against one of the holes in the wall, leaving space for another to follow behind him to the second hole. He had made it as a failsafe for just in case he had gotten caught by a noble in the men’s changing room. He planned on bribing them with the opportunity to facet their eyes on some of the most beautiful nobility that Clover had to offer, so he created a second hole if such an occurrence had to arise. However, today, he was here with an aspiring Magic Knight who he met a while ago when they both bumped into one another peeping in the bath house of the Royal Capital. From that point, they had an inseparable bond between two gentlemen of the craft. When Iolo had heard that Cain hadn’t been to this resort before, he was immediately smitten with the idea to bring him along for the most successful surveillance operation to date.

It took a lot to get Cain to agree to a random day trip to some resort, and it took even more to get him to agree to stay for a few days in some noble suite alongside Iolo, even if it did have multiple rooms with multiple beds. It seemed a little…well, Iolo didn’t want to dwell on that aspect of it. But, in the quick couple of minutes that they had been here, Iolo had proven to Cain that it was worth the trip and the effort. He smiled as he momentarily looked back at him.

“See, what did I tell you Cain,” he whispered, making sure to keep his voice as quiet as possible, “Look at these beauties man. It’s incredible. You have blondes, brunettes, and even babes with orange hair,” Iolo continued, pressing his face back up against the wall to inspect the hole, finding his eyes falling particularly on the woman with that deep, orange hair.

“She must be a vermillion or something, I tell you.”

“Who cares about her? You don’t even got a front view with her.” Cain replied, sliding the binoculars back to Iolo. The man truly was gifted. The room he had created was perfect, with virtually no sound being able to escape it. It made it the perverts paradise. “With Catherine and that Jeanne girl, we got a front row view. That Roselei has got quite the set…I’m guessing a D-cup. Maybe more. What do you think?”

Iolo nodded his in agreement. “It has to be something like that. They’re beautiful. I would say that I regret her sister not being here; both of them, but as a friend to Rose, I don’t think I’d be right of me to stare at another woman’s assets.” He shook his head in what seemed to be disappointment. “But damn, House Roselei has some of the most beautiful women in the world. Stil…” he pressed his binoculars up against the hole again. “Clover just has some beautiful women in general.”

It seemed part of the pervert's wish would be granted. A grumbling Victoria would be seen submerging herself in the spring, her strawberry blonde hair worn in a ponytail draped over her left shoulder.

"Why did you call me out here? You're taking precious time away from my training. At this rate I'll never catch Liz....." she muttered, her tone grouchy.

"Not with that attitude you won't. Besides, what did I say about working yourself to the bone? You'll get sloppy, and pick up bad fighting habits. Now imagine having to unlearn all of those bad habits then, THEN learning the right ones," Cathy chided in response before smiling.

"Besides, I need to treat my baby sister to something nice once in a while; or will you deny your loving sis such an opportunity? How selfish..." She pretended to pout, her expression sad.

"Well, you could always spoil me instead," Jeanne quipped before leaning her head on Catherine's shoulder, snuggling closer.

"I will; but I like to share my affection with all those near and dear to me. Plus, I already have something you'll like set aside." Jeanne squealed with excitement.

Vic sighed. "Fineee. Gods," she commented, rewarded with a smile from her older sister. "Where's Liz anyway?"

"Working."

"See?? She's not taking the day off."

"Well, she has other ways of rejuvenating herself." Jeanne guffawed.

Eve just watched this conversation unfold, shaking her head even as she was rankled by the feeling of being watched. For now, she chose to ignore it; she was just being paranoid in all likelihood. With that, Eve settled deeper into the pooling spring.

“Oh, we got a new one.” Cain said. He could only see her breasts from the peeping hole, but he instantly knew who it was. Cain had a database of breasts in his head, it was truly a gift. “Pretty sure that’s Victoria Roselei. Has to be, I’d recognize those breasts from a mile away.” he began, informing Iolo.

Iolo kept observing quietly. He was almost too quiet, as if trapped in thought. But then suddenly, still watching carefully, he inquired.

"Do you think all of them are going to start making out?"

Cain's eyes lit up. "Do you have an aphrodisiac thing you can do with your magic? You have no idea how nice it is to see Catherine and Jeanne get it on." he said. "It starts off slow, as if they're teasing you. It's a delicate sight to see, but then it gets steamy. The Devils would watch in fear of how damn intense it gets. Its truly...magic."

Iolo paused. "I was going to say maybe, but from your description, I think I now have some empirical evidence to go off on. So, my answer is most definitely. I can set the tune with some music. Maybe they'll think its from the resort or something."

Cain nodded. "Remember, it's not gay if we don't make eye contact." he stated, looking back into the peeping hole. "Lets do this."

“Or is it?” Iolo smiled, raising his eyebrows in what could only be interpreted as seductively. Cain just sort of looked at him weirdly, and Iolo assumed from the fraught silence that he had made things weird. He coughed to break the tension, before pulling a soprano saxophone from his grimoire.

“I call this magic spell, Songbird.”

There was no hesitation in Iolo’s playing, as if his talent was magical; it literally was to an extent. The song was slow, melodic, jumping between counterpoints that high and low registers, creating the aura and semblance of a beautiful beach perched under the setting sun. However, it was truly spectacular, amplifying throughout the entire women’s bath area.

Jeanne paused. "They have music now too? They're spoiling us now." She closed her eyes for a second, listening to the rise and fall of the registers. It was melodic as she watched the ebb and flow of waves in her mind. Her eyes reopened, lightly pecking Catherine on the cheek. She cuddled closer.

Cathy raised a teasing eyebrow. "And what was that for?"

"Oh, just a little something." Jeanne grinned. Catherine returned the favor with a kiss of her own, lingering a bit by Anne's lips. As she threatened to separate, content to snuggle against one another, Jeanne would bring Cathy's mouth back to her own, a longer, more drawn out french kiss ensuing.

As they did separate, Jeanne's attention would trail downwards, nibbling lightly at Cathy's neck.

"Gently now...last time you did that I wore a scarf for a we-" her breath hitched as the playful nibble intensified before shifting to her ear. With a light nudge, Cathy would bring Jeanne's mouth back to her own, one hand around her waist as a sneaky second hand targeted Anne's exposed chest.

Now it was Jeanne who gasped, their kiss pressing onward as their tongues twined around one another. A small moan escaped her as Cathy's handed drifted, a light squeeze turning into a teasing fondle. Each finger meticulously rubbing the sensitive area. Their lips would part once more, Cathy's tongue trailing downwards as she found the other soft mountain. She'd run her tongue lightly over its tip, feeling Jeanne shiver in anticipation. Cath returned to her teasing, circling around it like a shark around prey. Then, she attacked.

Jeanne bit back a cry as her body began trembling. Her hands began their own southward trek as her breath became quicker, more ragged.

Vic, meanwhile turned bright red. "U-U-Um. W-We're still here you know," she stammered thrown off balance by the turn of events. She would hear the sounds of other "couplings" as the music worked its way through the space. The woman tried shaking her head to clear it, only for the song to increase in volume and intensity. Her blush deepened as her gaze slid towards Eve shyly, unsure of what to say. Vic would start drifting to Eve's location on a whim.

Eve, however, stiffened. The feeling of being watched intensified as the music went up several notches. She was pretty sure that there was nothing on the brochure mentioning music. Where was it coming from? Eve focused, attempting to decipher where it originated. However, the increasing intensity of the lovefest in front of her proved a distraction. Then there was the sound of others engaging in similar acts. Yet..what put her off was the hunger in Vic's expression as she half swam, half walked closer to Eve.

With that, the woman stood up, unintentionally giving a secret audience a generous view of her rear end and swaying hips as she walked out of the pool, moving to a quieter location.

"What'd I tell you, man?" Cain said. "Cathy and Jeanne. Got more intense than I thought it would though. Your music is...something."

Because Iolo was forced to play the saxophone, it wasn’t like he could play the soprano and see the action happening at once. Still, the spell was active, for at least a few more minutes. The saxophone simply fell back into the grimoire as he pressed his face against the wall. His smile intensified.

“Ohohoho! This is amazing!!!”

Eve walked further away, noting the music had faded a bit. Not that it mattered; the others were too deep into their activities to care. With the quieter music, however, Eve's focus returned. Probably because she didn't swing that way to begin with; regardless, time was of the essence. The settling music meant it was slowly becoming disconnected from its source, a part of the ambience rather than coming from a specific point. If she wanted to know who or what was making it, the time had to be now.

With that, Eve went to work, following the crescendos and decrescendos as they occurred. she would follow the lockers of the changing room at first, thinking it to come from there. Yet, it didn't feel quite right. Each one she opened revealed emptiness or clothes. Yet, even as her frustration built, Eve could tell she was getting warmer, the music almost...beckoning. She would find herself in the women's baths once more, willfully ignoring the other "crescendos". Moving to the rear of the space, Eve would place her ear against the wall, carefully listening for any strong traces of music or the type of instrument producing it.

And then....she found it. *"Hmm..why is coming from there?"* she placed a hand against the wall focusing on the section where the notes were strongest. "Object Convert: Glass." The hardened part of wall shifted, becoming a smooth transparent glass surface; revealing a hollowed out space. And two people, no, two males inside.

".........YOU FUCKING CUNTS!!" she roared, the bathhouse shaking. Eve didn't necessarily see who the two guys were, only that they were there; more importantly, she knew why they were there. Her fists rocketed through the glass surface, reaching for the peeping toms.

Once Cain had seen the wall, and who it was on the other side; the wanting for suicide had never been stronger. He wrapped his scarf around the eyes before throwing up in the corner. “THE FUCK, MOM!” Cain yelled, almost throwing up once again.

Iolo was caught off guard by Eve’s fist, perhaps from the distraction taking places in the bath itself and was met with a force beholden to a Senior Magic Knight. However, in Iolo’s opinion, this was part of the job and part of the craft. He fell back into the wall opposite of the one Eve smashed and scratched the back of his head as he continued looking her direction.

“The orange hair woman!” he exclaimed suddenly, finally able to put a face to the woman that had caught his initial attention in the first place. “Eve, of Blue Rose, right?”

Her bubbling anger continued fermenting, even as she saw her son. If anything, it worsened. "So this is how you spend your free time you bitchass brat? A fucking pervert like your deadbeat dad," she snapped, cracking her knuckles before seeing who her other fist had connected with.

"Captain Iolo??!! Why the hell are you here?? Don't answer that." She clobbered her vomiting son with a deft left hook.

Cain slammed his head into the wall because of the sudden punch, groaning in annoyance.

Meanwhile, the shattering of glass and Eve's thunderous bellow dispelled the amorous mood. Jeanne and Cathy paused from their coupling, a suspiciously sticky hand dropping to Jeanne's side. Other patrons seemed confused at first, separating from each other before going back to where they were. A few ended up gathering their things and leaving, mortified as they realized a) what they were doing and b) that they had been watched.

Vic, for her part, could only dredge up pure, unadulterated disgust and deep disappointment. It showed in her expression as it fell about the shattered section of wall, glass fragments everywhere. She covered herself.

"Well well, it seems we had some viewers. What should we do about that Annie dear?" Cathy asked.

Jeanne grinned. "Isn't it obvious? We make them pay for it. Things like that aren't for free or for show...the question is..how they should pay for it. Cash? Credit? Favors? Blackmail? Hmm..so many options..so little time."

“Wait, hold on,” Iolo started, pulling himself onto his feet. “This isn’t the kid’s fault. This was strictly my idea but let me explain why.”

There wasn’t a man in Clover who found themselves more skilled with words than Iolo. Guthrie frequently used him for various reasons such as memoires, odes and poems, and even cataloguing reports for the Clover Kingdom. He was confident in himself, so he smiled just as any confident person would, almost as if he was a politician.

He paced out of the room, into the open where all could see him. “In my years of service to the Clover Kingdom, I have done nothing but devote myself entirely to the prosperity of the kingdom. I have served in foreign lands to eliminate our enemies, and even in domestic outpost that have sought our help. What has kept me alive? What has helped me prosper in my missions overseas, you ask?”

Iolo paused. “Stealth.”

He pointed over to Cain. “You see, Cain is an aspiring Magic Knight, a man who desires deeply to serve Clover and to help our beloved King Guthrie, long may he reign. When I found Cain, he was inexperienced, hopeless even. However, I have molded him into a warrior worthy of serving the Magic Knights, and worthy of receiving all of Clover’s blessings. This was my ultimate test, and my greatest reward in completion of his training. For what is greater test than to hide deep within the corridors surveying, and guarding, the most beautiful women that Clover have to offer.”

He gave Eve a pointed glance before re-dividing his attention to the group.

“The Roselei sisters, Catherine and Victoria, surely you both understand what we have done, yes? Why this is essential for the prosperity of our Kingdom? It was the test to determine if Cain was ready for the Magic Knight Exams, and to prepare him for his life in Green Mantis. So, in fact, let’s all pause to give him a round of applause and praise him for what he has done so far! Cain, I honor ye!”

Cain caught onto Iolo's train of thought rather quickly. While in reality the whole situation had been for peeping, the man had mentioned the idea of improving his stealth, albeit it possibly having been in a joking manner. He stood back up, facing one of the walls in their peeping room, still blindfolded by his own scarf. "Mr. Iolo is correct!" he exclaimed, spreading his arms. "As my bitch of a mother would say, I'm like a decapitated chicken running around. I truly lack any form of stealth based behaviour. Mr. Iolo has taught me quite a lot about how to be stealthy, and this was my test. I thank Mr. Iolo for his help, from the bottom of my heart!"

"Huhuhu, aren't you a clever one," Jeanne commented as she listened to Iolo's in depth explanation, "However, it doesn't change the fact that you were caught. And are those binoculars I see? Seems like you were less guarding and more, getting an eyeful. That's pretty poor form don't you think? Now, pay up. Unless you'd like your personal hobby broadcast. Wouldn't a certain someone be disappointed?" Anne gave the blindfolded Cain a long look.

Eve karate chopped him the blindfolded Cain on the head, even as Victoria gave the smallest of nods to Iolo's reasoning. "Do you really expect me to believe that horseshit? I don't know about you, Captain Iolo, but I know a liar when I see one. Why the hell would you need to guard us in a bathhouse?? Eh? Why the peep holes? Why the sensual ambience music? Stealth mission my fucking ass."

Catherine smiled. "She has a point you know. And spying on a happy couple too..so rude; it's quite unbecoming for a nobleman. Your response Iolo?"

“I’d pay up, but I’m broke!” Cain replied. “I’ll do basically anything el— Wait, how do you know about that whole shtick?”

"You think you're the only one watching people? As you so eloquently stated, you're as stealthy as a chicken in death throes. Besides, the two of you are always seen together lately, with friends or just you...and her. Might you be...a couple?" Jeanne pressed, seemingly enjoying Cain's squirming.

"No. Yes? No, we're not. Just, yes. No. No." Cain stammered.

Iolo shrugged his shoulders. “Look, Cain. I’m sorry, but it seems to appease our audience, you’re going to have to give them what something they want. I’m sure you understand that this is a consequence of failed operations.” He glanced at the women. “He’s all yours. Do with him what you will, but I beg of you as a teacher, please have mercy on my student. He is bought a boy, still. Anyway, Cain, come see me when you’re done. In the meanwhile, I’ll bid you ladies adieu,” Iolo replied, beginning his stroll to the exit.

"Iolo!" Cain yelled. "I don't wanna die! And I don't wanna pay up! I don't even have enough for a bowl of gumbo!"

Jeanne turned from her teasing to stare at Iolo's retreating figure. "And where do you think you're going Iolo?" she inquired, "You did say this was your idea, thus, I expect you to compensate each of us in full. I'm afraid the little boy is in a sorry state financially. Until he has a well-paying job, in which his first few checks will belong to us, it's expected you will foot the bill."

Cathy smirked. "You do have to set a good example Iolo. You are a Captain after all. Or do you just leave your perverted charges to the wind so you can pursue your own perversions??"

Steam continued to come out Eve's ears. So much for a day of relaxing. "I can't fucking believe you; dumb brat." However, she would hear a whistling sound. Turning, she'd see Victoria move forward, her hand flying across Cain's face. *SLAP*. Vic then turned on her heel and walked away, trudging through the bathhouse before throwing on a towel and bathrobe.

"Well, looks like someone's angry."

As Cain got slapped by Victoria, he groaned in annoyance. "Is that where Beatrix gets her abusiveness from?!" he questioned rather loudly.

Iolo grimaced. “God Damn! Okay, okay. No more hitting Cain, from either any of you. If anybody wants to punch something, or slap something, take a swing at me.”

He smirked, “I am a man after-all. But, as for your request Jeanne, I would hate to admit it, but it seems that I forgot to bring my wallet with me. I don’t have the cash here necessary to compensate you, and I dare venture that none of you would be willing to head back with me to my estates to receive my payment in full, so for now, put it on my tab.”

Jeanne gave him a long look. "How convenient to forget it. Do realize interest is a thing. The longer you wait, the more it will cost you. So do find that wallet in the near future," she commented, smirking.

Cathy sighed. "Probably. My kin has a special dislike reserved for perverts and peepers. They tend to become punching bags for my family. I wonder if they have a sixth sense for that kind of thing...." she responded, drumming her cheek thoughtfully.

Eve just walked away, seething anger becoming potent disappointment. To think she had respected Captain Iolo. "I'm done. Thanks for the invite Catherine, but the damn thing's ruined."

Iolo nodded in agreement. "Yes, then let us part ways," he playfully jested, bowing like some sort of jester. However, the moment that he did, his brown-wallet from the pocket of his jacket that, upon hitting the ground, generated a noticeable thump. He paused.

"Well, shit."