"Seems like a reasonable attitude to me," says Serik.

"Not that I'm selfless enough to volunteer now."

"Also reasonable."

"Yeah, alright, that's all fair enough. It'll be nice to have more company, too."

"I'm glad to have your approval. Is it just us, or...?"

"No, Tanaikon's daughter Irikaino lives here too. I've only met her the once, in the library."

"She lives in the northwest wing. That part of the castle belongs to her, and the village by the lake belongs to the swans, and guests are welcome everywhere else."

"Understood."

"The library is so great."

"I'll look forward to that, then."

Serik laughs.

"Maybe later, though," he says, looking at Tanaikon thoughtfully. "...I continue to not be into pain, but if you can do without...that was some kiss, earlier."

"Was it." He grins. "Yeah, I can do that."

"Oh, very much so."

"Well, then—"

And he steps closer to Necori and kisses him again. Very much for its own sake, this time, not as a calculated display of sexual aggression. That's not to say there is no sexual aggression present; he did seem to like it the first time around, after all.

Yep, sexual aggression is good. On both sides.

Fun.

"Doesn't he make such great faces?" Siva asks Necori faux-innocently.

"You might have a point," Necori says when he has to come up for air.

"I'm very glad I entertain you both," says Serik, and then he kisses Necori again.

This is a positive and not unexpected turn of events!

Siva is totally right about the faces.

Necori is not exactly in an optimal vantage point for observing this!

That's true.

But his current vantage point has other benefits.

He's not complaining. Rather the opposite, both in terms of opinion of what's going on and amount of coherent words going on.