The Arcane Lord 3

Noble Magic

Book 3

Alex Prone

Marcus Sloss

Copyright © 2024 by Alex Prone

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

Chapter One

“Are you sure you want me to cut it?” Thalia asked with a pout, her eyes darting from his eyes to his mouth and beard. She stood before him with the razor with her blue eyes glimmering in the sunlight.

“I need you to cut it,” Julian replied with a gentle smile as she caressed his beard. He hadn't had time to cut it himself in the last few days, and it was looking quite scruffy.

Liz heaved herself up and stared into his eyes while she adjusted his belt.

“This beard is starting to grow on me as well,” she said, kissing him on the neck and making the hairs of his thin beard stand on end. She noticed it and smiled broadly, kissing him again.

“I don't think our future sister-wife likes it,” Rayra said in a voice from the end of the room, where she stood with her arms crossed. Of the three girls, she was the most bothered by the situation.

“She’ll have the time to grow used to it. Anyway, she asked me to tone things down. She likes all of us and besides that, it’s needed. We’ll have the time to get to know each other.” Julian said, gesturing for Thalia to cut the beard. She promptly cleaned the razor and applied a mixture of different soaps to his face. She had a good hand for it, and Julian almost felt nothing as she slowly removed all the hair.

“It's outrageous. At first, I thought she was talking about a military union … and now this. We’re going to be shown like circus animals to the people.” Her voice echoed through the room, which was full of discontentment. Julian had never seen her that angry. Looking at her from the corner of his eye, he saw her averting his gaze, ashamed.

“It must be done if we intend to overcome Fenrir's forces. Who do you expect to fight in the war? Us and only half the kingdom? The princess has shown nothing but support for us until now. Can you please try to understand that?” Julian asked, taking care to hide his annoyance. Rayra was always the one who rationalized everything alongside him. He wasn't used to her having such strong opposition to his plans.

“That's the problem. It's a political marriage. That's what's wrong with you … with all of you,” she said, moving to the end of the room in long strides and exiting the bedroom with a loud thump of the door.

“Wow.” Liz moved to the side and sat on the bed. A dumbfounded expression stamped on her face. “She's really offended.”

“Do you have any idea why?” Julian asked, trying to look at her but failing.

“Stay still. I just joined your family. I don't want to kill you in an accident,” Thalia chimed in, pulling his head and making him look ahead again.

“She hasn’t told me anything,” Liz replied, leaning against the immense bed Princess Anasthasia had arranged for them. “I can try to figure it out.”

“No, I'll speak with her.” He gazed into the room's far end as Thalia moved to the right side of his face. “Are you girls ready?”

“What do you think about this dress?” Thalia asked, moving away from him and expanding her arms to show him her look.

She wore a silk blue dress that fit her curves perfectly. The small strap on her shoulders highlighted her athletic arms. Her round breasts were covered by an intricate lace bra that could be seen if Julian looked with attention, and it only made her look even more beautiful. The dress glimmered with light, as did her blue eyes and blue hair.

“The color matches you.”

“I fought it for a long time. Now I've embraced it.”

“You're gorgeous, Thalia,” Julian said earnestly as he watched the girl walking his way again. She cleaned his face with a towel and then kissed his lips passionately. She never missed an opportunity to kiss him, and Julian loved the sweet flavor of her tongue. When her hand reached his neck and he felt his arousal slowly rising inside his pants, he heard Liz coughing on the bed.

“As much as I would love to watch you, we don't have the time. We're already late.” A smile stamped her face as she tried to hide her desire. Julian sincerely wanted to jump on that bed and spend the day making love with them. However, he had a duty to fulfill. As if reading his mind, Liz heaved herself from the bed and started striding towards the door, holding Thalia's hand and walking her to the door. “I won't give you any chances, Lord Julian. I'm well aware of your tricks.”

“It's hard not to think about that when I'm surrounded by the most beautiful women in the world,” Julian said as he watched their backs walking to the corridor. How lucky I am, he thought as he contemplated their delicate waists as they grinned over their shoulders.

“Later, we'll give you a special treatment. Right, sis?” Liz asked at the front of the door. The other girl had a naughty smile on her complexion when she was about to leave the room. Thalia didn't reply, resorting to a slight wink before disappearing through the door and into the corridor.

Julian watched them go their own way and gathered his coat, dressing it in front of the mirror. His black hair was well combed to fit behind his ears, and the length of it gave him both a regal and a hard-worker appearance. Only the Last knew that Julian had zero time to care for his appearances in the last weeks. His hair always seemed to find a way to look fine, and he was grateful for that.

He adjusted his coat and smiled at the mirror. It was still hard for Julian to understand that the figure he was watching was indeed him. His muscles had grown since becoming a mage, and he felt a bit taller. He could also see his magical aura swirling around his body, mixing with the environment and making him pridefully smile.

New medals stamped his coat on both chests, symbols of his latest accomplishments. Anasthasia had told them that the common people loved an experienced soldier and that this would strengthen their bond in the masses' eyes. Julian had studied politics at the Iron Fist Academy and saw the reason behind the princess's words; however, he couldn't shake the feeling that it wasn't deserved.

Inside the lord's head, he had just done what needed to be done and nothing more, and now he was on the verge of becoming the king for his feats. Someone else might think Anasthasia was desperate to unify the kingdom, but Julian thought otherwise. He saw that the princess could handle it, but she couldn't miss the opportunity to make things work smoothly. Julian respected that and couldn't deny that he admired her profoundly and felt attracted to her in multiple ways.

At the end of the day, there would be no losers in this union. Julian would be king, and the realm would be unified to fight the common enemy. Nevertheless, Julian couldn't shake Rayra's reaction from his mind. He needed to speak with her and ensure they were on the same page. He wasn't ready to put his relationship at stake. Princess Anasthasia would need to find another way to unify the kingdom if one of his wives wasn't on board.

With those thoughts in mind, Julian strode out of the room and exited the castle, where a carriage awaited him and his wives.

When they arrived at the rally, and everyone else started to descend the carriage steps toward the stage, Julian gently held Rayra's hand.

“Can I have a word?” She nodded without looking him in the eye and sat again on the seat before him. “What's happening, my love? What did I do wrong?”

“You did nothing wrong. It was my mistake not to consider your nature.”

“What do you mean?”

“We don’t get together for political or any other reason except love in my homeland, Julian.”

“I see. Do you want me to cancel it? We can find⁠—”

“No!” she interrupted him, raising her eyes to glare at him and her hands apologetically. “I understand why you need to do it, and I'm not trying to impede it. I’ll support you; I just need time to adjust. Can you understand that?”

“Of course, and who knows? Maybe this will lead to love. We really don’t know each other at this point, but we respect and are attracted to each other,” Julian said, moving one hand to her cheek and slowly raising her head.

Rayra had a look he had never seen on her. She used to be the face of security, confidence, and power, and now she looked as frustrated as anyone could be. Her eyes darted away from his, and Julian saw her body contract back into the seat.

“I’ll give you all the time you need. You can always talk to me, you know that, right?”

“Yes,” she replied, finally looking him in the eye. With their gaze locked, she said, “You have no idea how much I love you, Julian Lionheart. I’m carrying your child, and I'll fight anyone to see our baby raised in a world without Fenrir's influence. I'll always be on your side; I just need to get accustomed to having her, too.”

“I understand.” Julian smiled and clasped his hands with hers, gripping them firmly. “I promise there will be no more political marriages.”

“You better be right about this, Julian. For your own sake,” she said with a wry smile as she kissed his lips warmly and moved outside the carriage. “Let’s go. It would be rude to make the people wait.”

Julian didn't recognize exactly where they were in the city. There was no smell of good food from the market or the stench of fish from the docks, so he assumed they were deep inside the town. The houses weren’t as big as the ones close to the commercial district, but they weren’t the shacks he could see in the distance while he climbed the Flying Pearl.

If he had to guess, they were in the middle of the Capital of Alinera. The street where the rally had been organized was vast and extended for several feet. Julian suspected they were on an avenue used to transport goods to the port and the royal roads. However, the street was now occupied by people of all races, who all gathered on it.

As Julian climbed the steps of the improvised stage that the royal workers had so quickly constructed, he looked at the crowd before him. They were mainly humans, with clothes varying from rags to well-tailored suits and dresses. At the far end of the street, he saw elves with their pointed ears and fine silk clothes, and amidst them, some of the twin snakes stood with their green coats and well-tailored shirts and pants. They weren’t trying to hide but weren't standing out on purpose, either.

There were goblin vendors and watchers sprawled through the crowd. Even one or two dwarves were present, though those were rare in Alinera due to their exile in the mines of Mandolor. What he couldn’t see were orcs amidst the crowd. Were the rumors of war finally confirmed to those who still traded in Alinera’s ports?

Julian looked to his side and saw that the buildings around the street were also full of people who couldn't find a spot amidst the crowd. They leaned against the windows and waited patiently for Anasthasia's speech. Seeing so many people watching them, a wariness took control of his heart.

He slowly moved to the chair beside Anasthasia and sat alongside the princess.

“Are you sure it's safe here, your grace?” he asked, smiling tenderly at the princess, who feigned stoicism.

She looked him in the eye for a couple of seconds before replying. Her hair was perfectly braided on the back of her head, and her crown fit perfectly above her head. Her eyes were like pools of indecipherable water, but when she replied, she had a smile on her face.

“I can’t be always sure, Baron Julian. My guard is ready, and we searched all the buildings before we arrived. However, I'm under some risk whenever I’m outside the Flying Pearl.” She returned the smile as if grateful for his worry and let one finger pass over his hand, taking care to not show their proximity before the announcement.

The fact that all of her soldiers seemed to be unarmed didn’t make Julian's heart feel any better. He could see a magical aura around them as they stood tall in a long line behind the chairs, but in Julian’s eyes, nothing could replace the sharpness of a blade. If his mana ended, he was still a fine swordsman and could always rely on his sword. Julian kept these thoughts to himself as he watched Princess Anasthasia lost in thought about her speech.

“Let’s do it?” Julian asked as he noticed the people getting anxious before the stage. The chatter was already loud enough to hamper his hearing.

Anasthasia nodded, and one of her guards moved to the front of the stage. The man had a grizzly beard behind his helm and a grave voice that echoed through the whole street.

“Princess Anasthasia Frent, Regent of all Alinera and its conquered lands, will now speak!” The older man spoke as loudly as he could and stomped his feet on the wooden tables beneath him three times until everyone was silent. Princess Anasthasia slowly rose and moved to the front of the stage. She wore a dress made of deep purple silk with a long skirt and sleeves. The dress had several silver details resembling armor. At her belt, a dagger was sheathed. The pommel of it shone with a single black jewel, giving her a threatening aura.

The princess looked regal and confident. When she walked, her eyes scanned the crowd below with respect and authority. She had selected the right outfit for the occasion, and Julian was again impressed.

“My loyal subjects,” she started in a tone loud enough for everyone to hear but low enough that she didn’t need to scream. “I bring you both good and bad news. I wish I could address you only with fantastic news as we did before, with the port's reconstruction, the commercial district's expansion, and the building of new homes for the people affected by the dry mines. We have had plenty to be thankful for in the last few years. However, now we must use all the force we've gathered to fight a common enemy.”

Before the princess finished her words, the crowd was already erupting into hushes. Julian could see people elbowing each other, and more than a dozen had their eyes watered. Alinera's people weren't fools, no matter which city they lived in. They knew when the news was dire, and it was hard for them to calm down. Anasthasia silenced herself and waited several seconds until her severe look brought the people into silent waiting again.

“I owe each and every one of you honesty, and I'll give it to you as straight as possible. The rumors are true. There’s an army being rallied at the Twelve Isles, and they are getting ready to attack us.” Before the crowd could erupt into questioning and despair, the princess raised her hands and demanded they be quiet again. “All is not lost, my loyal subjects. Yesterday, our brave Baron Julian Lionheart arrived from the Isles with a significant victory. We'll face terrible odds against the enemy, but have already won the first battle.”

“Who?!” one voice yelled from the crowd, and others followed it. Julian rose from his chair beside the princess, and when he faced the crowd, he heard several gasps and some unimpressed smirks.

“Baron Julian Lionheart, a graduate from the Iron Fist Academy, Lord of the Lionheart lands, Baron of Silverhold and its adjacent lands, and like our First King, a Primordial Mage.”

Upon hearing those words, the crowd silenced itself instantly. It was as if the princess had herself covered their mouths. Julian had never heard anyone speaking about his powers as those of a Primordial mage, but he thought the title was fitting if he had the powers of Cerulex.

“Impossible!” one of the crowd screamed, and others started to echo those words.

“It can't be! He's no king!” another one called.

“That's why we are here today,” the princess said, addressing the crowd. “It’s already been two years since the King and Queen tragically passed, and I’m honored to announce to you that I’m following the first king’s tradition and forming a polyamorous family. Baron Julian Lionheart will be King Consort of Alinera in two weeks, and I and his wives will be the queens.”

Silence was replaced by utter shock as the jaws of the people in the crowd threatened to reach the ground. Julian watched everything calmly as Rayra, Liz, and Thalia moved to stand next to him and Anasthasia. The first was doing everything possible to hide her discontentment while the other two smiled broadly at the crowd. At the gathering's far end, the twin snakes' goons were nowhere to be seen.

The eyes of the crowd were aimed toward the new members of the royalty, and Julian saw dozens of pairs of eyes halting at his medals, just like Anasthasia had predicted. They hadn’t booed him, so he thought the people hadn’t rejected him. Maybe I need to show them I’m a real Arcane Mage? Julian asked himself as he watched some shocked faces turn into grins.

Suddenly, it didn’t look like Anasthasia had just told them about the coming of a war. The crowd seemed about to cheer when he heard the screaming coming from the right side of the street, just above the stage.

“For the Isles!” a voice screamed.

“Freedom!” another one joined it, and then several loud clicks echoed before an explosion erupted from the buildings.

Julian had only time to look at his side as he heard the projectiles piercing the air. He knew instinctively that the weapons that had just fired were the same ones he had seen the twin snakes using; however, the shooters' voices sounded as rough as the orcs.

In less than one second, soldiers were surrounding Julian’s family and from the ground, a metal dome erupted. The soldier’s armor glimmered with magic as well as Anasthasia’s crown. They’re all metal mages! Even the princess! Realization hit Julian, but he hadn’t the time to think more about it.

The projectiles that hit the dome could be seen threatening to pierce it, but stopped at the metal.

“Attack!” another voice called from the building, and Julian heard the rush of several feet moving toward them. Julian heard the crowd below him start to panic.

“Are you alright?” Julian asked Anasthasia, who needed a few seconds to answer with a nod as her eyes searched their surroundings. There was only a small hole at the top of the dome, and all they could do was hear the commotion.

“The evacuation plan is in motion, princess. I can hear the carriage approaching. We’ll move the dome and protect the royal family,” the grizzly soldier said as he outstretched his hand, making the dome vibrate with more magic.

“No.” Anasthasia replied automatically, making the soldier raise his eyebrows.

“With all due respect, your grace⁠—”

“I’ll not be frightened by mere orcs. If we don’t fight, how the people will believe in our cause?” she asked, looking directly at Julian’s eyes, who nodded and looked at his wives.

“We'll fight. Protect the princess, but be ready to open a portal as an escape route.” All the girls nodded and assumed their positions. “I admire your courage, but you can’t die. Try to stay safe.” Julian told Anasthasia as the wall of metal crumbled before his eyes, and the orcs arrived at the stage with a loud thump, jumping from amidst the crowd as others kept shooting them from the buildings.

These weren’t transformed orcs; they had no dragons or dragonborns to help them. However, they didn’t seem scared at all. Their tusks were watered with saliva, and their red eyes were full of malice behind the black masks and robes they wore. At the top of the building, Julian could see another volley of projectiles being prepared to be used against them.

Before Julian could open his mouth to warn Rayra, she was already shooting at the enemies.

“Shit!” she muttered, aiming an arrow toward one of the windows and shooting. Julian heard a scream but didn’t look to see who had been hit; he was too occupied running to face the orcs before him.

Five soldiers joined him, slashing and thrashing at the orcs that slowly crowded the wooden stage. Julian counted at least ten orcs already in the fray from where they had climbed, while others were forcing themselves through the crowd from the surrounding buildings. Whoever had searched the rooms around the rally and the crowd did a terrible job or was a traitor.

A giant orc with an axe swung its blade toward Julian’s head. He ducked it and struck it with the pommel of his sword. He heard the creature’s jaw snap with the attack as it fell to the side of the stage. Another enemy followed, but before it could reach Julian, it was hit by one of Liz’s drowning bubbles. Julian shoved the creature aside and struck the next one, severing its arm with his enchanted blade and punching a third one in the temple with his gauntlet hand.

He kept fighting every one of the orcs, but they didn’t stop coming. Julian wanted to use the whip of arcane magic or even a blast, but it was too risky with that many soldiers and civilians close by. He would need to keep striking them in the old-school manner. He gritted his teeth and smiled as he gutted another orc. It turned out that Julian loved relying on his sword.

One of the soldiers shoved an orc toward Julian, and it was met by Julian’s sword at the chin, piercing the skull and exiting on the other side. Julian quickly pulled the sword away, already ducking another blow from a giant orc who had just jumped before him. As he swung his blade, the orc was hit by an arrow in the eye and fell to its back.

Julian heard the clicking sound coming from the opposite side of the building and turned his head to see orcs firing from one building that seemed unoccupied until the last second. He prepared a blast to throw toward the buildings, but before he could release it, another metal wall rose before his eyes, intercepting the projectiles from above.

Anasthasia appeared at his side, her brow full of sweat and her hands raised. She had performed that magic, which had taken a toll on her. She wasn’t experienced in performing it, but Julian could see she was talented.

“I thought you were going to stay safe,” Julian said, a tinge of annoyance in his voice.

“I can’t. I need to be here to squash this little rebellion,” she said. Thalia strode past them with her sword held high as she prepared to swing at the enemies still mounting on the stage.

“Right. Don’t put yourself at more risk; use your walls,” Julian commanded. The princess nodded, staying close to Rayra, who released another volley of arrows toward the reloading orcs at the buildings.

More screams came from the building, but the enemies didn’t stop their attack. Julian dispatched three more orcs alongside Liz as he watched Thalia dismembering at least five of them and helping the soldiers to stand their ground. Some soldiers now had maces, shields, and spears made out of the strange metal the princess had used to save their lives twice that day.

When they were about to overcome the enemy, another volley of arrows reached the stage, only to be again rejected by Anasthasia’s metal wall. Julian heard three creatures stomping on the stage, and they seemed to be the last ones. When the protection wall was finally depleted, three immense orcs stood their ground before them. They were at least seven feet tall and carried immense two-handed swords. Wearing full armor, the orcs looked even taller. These didn’t seem angry; if anything, they seemed bored, which, in Julian’s eyes, was more threatening than any rage.

The shots from the buildings stopped as the orcs rushed against the soldiers at the front. The monsters hurled the men away with sudden and violent movements, making three soldiers fall from the stage without having time to react. Thalia was the next in line, and the girl stood her ground, holding her sword with two hands and preparing to face the three enemies. However, only one stopped to face her, while the other two ignored the girl and rushed toward the Princess and Julian, barreling through the soldiers, who tried to stand their ground and block their path.

Rayra aimed at them, and Julian started to dash toward the orcs when he felt the gush of wind hitting all of them. Both orcs and humans were hurled by a strong wave of air that brought debris and dirt to Julian’s eyes. He shook his head, trying to stand his ground, but the magic hurling them away was too sudden for him to react.

They flew toward the end of the stage; the wind getting increasingly violent. If they didn’t stop, they would crash against the opposite building, and Julian suspected that they wouldn’t get away from it with only superficial bruises. He outstretched his hand, trying to hit the wood and use the sword as an anchor, but the wind was too strong. He lost the grip of his sword and grasped for a loose wooden board; he held it firmly. He stood his ground while watching Liz trying to use water to stop the wind, but the magic repeatedly dissipated her wall. She had one hand with the princess while the wall protected them from flying.

Rayra and Thalia flew by Julian at an immense velocity, and he wasn’t fast enough to grab their hands. The three orcs were somehow still on their feet, but only barely, as they stumbled toward Julian. Soon, they would crash against them, and everyone would be smashed against the opposite building. In the crowd, several people screamed in despair.

“Make a wall!” Julian screamed, trying to make the princess listen to him. “A wall!” he repeated and watched Anasthasia turn her head toward him, as the realization struck her. She released Liz’s hand, and as she was caught by the wind, she raised an enormous wall of metal that blocked the wind on the whole stage.

She fell to the ground as Julian and all the others did. The orcs on the other side of the wall collapsed against the metal. Julian prepared a blast in his left hand and aimed it where he believed the wind mage was.

“Release the wall,” Julian commanded the princess.

“What? No, they will kill us.”

“Release the wall,” Julian insisted, and as the wall crumbled and the air passed above it, he released the blast. The ball of energy cut the air as if it were nothing. It traveled at immense speed, flying toward the origin of the attack. The explosion hit the building, and the sound was almost deafening. As the wind halted, the wooden and rocky walls of the building became a sea of blue flames.

The inertia dropped the three orcs with a loud THUMP onto the wooden boards. Julian exploded a blast on the far left one before it could get up as the second one drowned in one of Liz’s water bubbles, but the third heaved himself up and rushed towards Anasthasia with murder in its eyes.

He prepared to grab the princess and duck the attacker when a steel wall appeared beneath the orc just as it neared them. The thing raised the orc into the sky and dropped to the ground. When it reached the ground, the metal had become a spear. Gravity made the magic spear transfix the orc’s body, but surprisingly enough, it didn’t die. Julian heard the orc grunting and trying to touch the ground with his feet, but the princess had other plans.

She unsheathed her dagger and pierced the orc’s throat right in the crack between the armor and the breastplate, making the creature gurgle and die agonizingly. The other orcs were all dead on the ground, and Rayra had just shot the last attackers on the far building.

The sounds of the crowd slowly returned to Julian’s ears, and gasps of surprise quickly replaced the panicking screams. After a few seconds, not a single voice came from the crowd; all he could hear was the labored breath of Princess Anasthasia, who stood tall and proud with her blade bathed in the enemy’s blood.

The crowd’s eyes flooded with pride and hope.

Chapter Two

Julian again smelled the lavender as he rested his head on the bathtub's edge. He closed his eyes and let the lingering feelings of battle slowly fade away. His hands were still shaking, and his eyelids throbbed with the adrenaline pulsating through his veins. The hot water and the caressing hands cleaning his body hadn’t been enough to ease his heart completely.

“Do you want anything else from us, babe?” Liz asked as she slowly passed the soap along his left arm.

“We’re worried,” Rayra said, cleaning his other arm with a light touch.

“Everything is fine,” Julian replied, opening his eyes and trying to reassure his wives. “It’s just the realization that war is really coming for us. They attacked in the middle of the day on a crowded street.”

“I heard a report before I entered the room saying it wasn’t the orcish army from the isles but a coalition between the Twin Snakes and an orc gang. They united to strike the princess at what they considered her lowest point.”

“One of the captains told me the same. It doesn’t matter who did it, though. Fenrir will know, and he’ll read it as one of our weaknesses.”

“I’m not seeing weakness at all,” Rayra interrupted, catching the water with a clay pot and removing the soap from Julian’s limbs. She smiled gently as she passed her clean hand over his pecs, arms, and abdomen. “Our future sister-wife showed prowess and determination. If anything, the realm will stand more united under her banner now. You and she fought fiercely to defend the common folk.”

“As did all of you. I’m deeply proud.”

“Are you more alright?” Liz asked, getting close and passing a wet hand through his hair. The sweat from the fight had made it oily, and she carefully removed all the dirt from him, making him feel like a renewed man.

“I am,” he replied, getting ready to stand. After all, they had a journey ahead of themselves.

“Where are you going?” Rayra asked, slowly pushing him back to lean on the bathtub.

“We need to prepare to travel to Silverhold,” Julian said, his eyebrows rising.

“We’re not going anywhere today. Princess Anasthasia will join us and asked for the rest of the day to prepare.” Liz’s hand entered the bathtub, and under the soap bubbles, Julian felt her grip finding his balls, and she started to massage them gently.

“Oh, is that what we’re going to do, then?” Julian asked with a grin as he watched Rayra imitate her sister-wife and grasp his cock with both hands underwater. She stroked it up and down vigorously, looking into Julian’s eyes, savoring every reaction he showed.

“We’re just preparing you for the big event tonight,” Rayra whispered in his ear as Julian felt his cock hard and throbbing under her firm grip. His hair stood on end with her breath close to his neck, and he searched for her lips, turning his head and finding her wet mouth and tongue eagerly waiting for him. He fought the urge to cum with the explosive sensation of his balls and cock being stroked while he savored Rayra’s tasteful tongue.

He parted from the kiss, not to explode, as thoughts hardly stayed in his mind.

“I thought Thalia wanted to participate tonight,” Julian managed to say as Rayra released his member, allowing Liz to assume the same position. She was faster than Rayra and stroked him from tip to base quickly and firmly, as if she wanted his blood to fill every inch of him. She was more than successful in her task; Julian could feel the head of his cock swollen with blood. His mind eagerly awaited to fuck them both on the spot, and as if reading his mind, Liz stopped the strokes and kissed his lips.

“You’re ready now. We hope you like it,” Liz murmured in his opposite ear, and both girls helped him get up from the bathtub, their eyes glued on his erect member as he walked from the bathtub.

“What did you prepare?” he asked with one eyebrow raised, desire consuming him.

“You’ll not need to wait,” Rayra said, opening the doors from the bathroom. The door led to their room, bathed in the sunset light. The light pierced the room, creating a beautiful orange canvas. However, the blue-haired girl on the giant bed in the middle of the room was what really caught the lord's attention. Her blue locks were loose and fell over her shoulders, almost touching her perfect breasts. Her face was reddened in shyness, making her cheeks pink like the color of her nipples. She darted her gaze from Julian, Rayra, and Liz, not knowing where to halt them.

She was completely naked, her crotch adorned with blue pubes, and her pink pussy glimmered with her excitement in the sunlight. Julian’s mouth watered upon the sight of her athletic thighs slightly opening as she finally locked eyes with him.

“Do you like what you’re seeing?” she asked, her voice low and embarrassed. “We can close the curtains,” she uttered the last part quickly, as if ready to hide under the sheets.

Julian didn’t reply, but his smile seemed enough to calm down the girl, who returned the smile as she slowly slid to the headboard, leaning back on the mattresses. Liz and Rayra walked to the sides of the bed and sat beside Thalia, but didn’t say a word. They knew this was her moment and didn’t want to intervene.

He climbed onto the bed knee-first, as his eyes locked with hers. He approached Thalia, holding his weight with one hand and opening her legs with the other. He felt the heat of her body as he moved up her body until he was close enough to lean in to kiss her. He moved one hand to the back of her neck and kissed her passionately, savoring her lower lip and eliciting a small moan from her lips.

“I love what I’m seeing,” he whispered. She tasted sweet, and when he found her tongue, she pulled herself into him and embraced his waist with her legs. He immediately felt the heat of her pussy against his crotch, and a shiver ran down his spine. He could feel her hot, wet pussy and his dick throbbed violently as it was pressed on her sex. He closed his eyes, enjoying the kiss and feeling the warmth of her embrace and the flavor of her mouth.

He moved his waist slowly, searching for a way to enter her. He felt his member completely wet from her juices as she tightened her grip on him, and he only had to move two or three times until he found her entrance. She was so wet that his cock slid inside with ease at first, and then it found a small barrier waiting for him.

She gasped for air, stopping the kiss and holding his head with both hands. Her face was a grimace of pleasure and shock. He knew she wanted to say something, but she could only nod while her body was washed with lust. He thrust his cock inside her and felt it going all the way through.

“Oh, by the Last!” she screamed, her arms embracing Julian beneath the armpit as he kept moving back and forth inside her. “Oh! Fuck! That’s feels fantastic!” Her words kept getting lost amid all the moans and screams she released. “More, Julian!” Julian groaned in pleasure at how tight her pussy was. It fit his cock perfectly, keeping him on the verge of exploding over and over again.

He bit his lip and stopped his waist movement, trying to catch some air and not end the fun so early. She wasn’t ready to quit, though. Just as Julian halted, she started to swivel her hips on his dick from one side to the other with it all inside her. It was almost maddening, but he suppressed his urge to cum and enjoyed her movement. He even caught a glimpse of Rayra and Liz, who watched everything with eyes full of desire.

He looked back at Thalia, her eyes rolling back as he suddenly removed his cock from inside her.

“No, please! Don’t stop now,” she pleaded between breaths, her voice husky, and her brow full of sweat.

“I’m not stopping,” he said, removing her hands and arms from around him and pinning them above her head. “Raise your legs,” he commanded, and she obeyed promptly, both legs outstretched to the side, making her pussy in full view. Her clit was pulsating with desire, and before he penetrated her again, he massaged it with his cock, making her moan as loud as the day they had made their magical tie.

As the memory flooded back into his mind, he decided to try to do the tie again. He breathed deeply and commanded his mana to surround his member as he thrust inside her.

The feeling was immediate as a wave of pleasure suddenly washed over him. He felt her tight channel trying to milk his cock inside her and knew he would not be able to control it for much longer. Thalia was speechless on the bed, with her eyes once again rolled back, and her mouth opened as Julian kept thrusting and thrusting all the way into her. He matched the rhythm of the movement and shared all the sensations he was getting with her while she did the same.

“Hold her hand, and concentrate on the mana,” Julian commanded, and Rayra and Liz each grabbed one of Thalia’s hands. He kept thrusting into her, using his whole lower body until he couldn’t take it anymore. The sounds of Thalia’s groans suddenly mixed with those of Rayra and Liz. He felt the head of his cock swell up with cum, and when he couldn’t take it anymore, he exploded inside her.

The three women screamed in pleasure as Julian came. Thalia’s legs shook violently from her own climax, but he didn’t stop. It was hard to keep going, but he persisted, determined to give them all the pleasure he could. As he continued thrusting, he could feel his cock spilling more and more cum inside her wet pussy. She was full of his seed, and both of their crotches were a sloppy mess when he finally stopped his movements and collapsed over Thalia's body.

“That was amazing,” Liz said with a surprised voice at his side.

“I've never felt anything like this,” Rayra added, holding his hand.

At that moment, it was hard for Julian to think. He only felt his heart slowly returning to normal as Thalia’s breathing became less labored. She embraced Julian firmly, kissing him wherever she could reach from their position.

“It was so much better than what I dreamt it would be,” she whispered, kissing his ear and slowly sinking into the bed. Julian rolled to her side as he watched her gradually succumb to exhaustion and sleep. His other two wives moved to lie by his side.

“Do you still have something for us?” Liz asked with a pleading pout.

“Always,” Julian replied, preparing to continue with them for the rest of the night.

Chapter Three

The entire entourage waited for the princess in the castle's main hall. The attack at the rally and the short time until the marriage made traveling through Thalia's portal a necessity rather than a convenience. They didn’t need to cross the city gates or travel to a dock; Thalia knew the way to Julian's house and only needed to open a portal. They would then walk along the bricked road to Silverhold from his manor.

They brought inside the castle two small carriages, six horses, ten soldiers—which Julian now knew were all steel mages, like the princess herself—and two servants. There weren’t many, but the plan was to travel in disguise. The princess would reveal herself when she arrived at Silverhold and Marimar—if they found it—but not before.

Besides, if Julian needed more men to enforce their power, he could recruit some from Silverhold’s stronghold or his own manor. He stood tall beside one of the carriages, all of his wives solemnly waiting by his side. Inside one of the carriages, he could hear the chuckles coming from Ranabi and his father. Surprisingly, the goddess found the old Lionheart’s jokes quite amusing, and Julian couldn’t be gladder his father was distracted from the trauma he suffered at the orc isles.

Their mission was simple: gather the banners at Silverhold and ready them to march to the capital, check on his estate to ensure it was working and being reconstructed, and also reunite his parents. They would leave the next day to investigate a tip Ranabi had discovered about a shortcut to Marimar. Originally, Rayra had alerted them that their journey would take at least three months by horse or foot. When Ranabi suggested she could command a whale or a giant eagle to get them to Marimar directly, the family had dismissed it. The trip would be faster, but they still couldn’t return before the wedding date. So they would investigate the shortcut and return to the capital via Thalia’s portal if it took too long.

Fenrir could very well discover they weren’t in the capital anymore and attack them again. Julian doubted that would happen, fearing that Fenrir could retaliate now that they had given his shard to Ranabi. However, he considered it wiser not to gamble with an elder and evil god.

Julian didn’t want to, but a part of him was already doubting the help Ranabi could offer. Since her arrival, the goddess had done nothing but talk and watch nature in the gardens of the Flying Pearl. Whatever she planned to do to defeat Fenrir, Julian was starting to agonize over the possibility that she might not be able to.

As his thoughts absorbed him, a pair of feet descended the immense staircase. Julian shook his head and looked up, only to find Princess Anasthasia descending towards them. She wore tight black trousers, leather boots, a loose silk white shirt, and a small blue coat. At her side, her dagger glistened with the room's lights. Her chin was high, and her expression severe. She looked more like an experienced soldier than a princess.

When she walked, her busty features became more apparent, her breasts bouncing freely beneath the blouse, and Julian couldn’t be gladder that was the fashion lately. She was gorgeous! He couldn’t believe his luck. Liz elbowed him.

“You’re staring,” she whispered, and when Julian looked at her, he noticed Rayra at her side with a grim expression stamped on her face.

Even after the princess displayed skills at the rally, Rayra hadn’t set aside the fact that they would all be married in two weeks. She was smart enough to understand that it was best for them, the realm, and her people, though it wasn’t easier to digest.

When Julian looked back to the princess arriving, she was already at the edge of the steps.

“Everyone ready?” she asked as the soldiers and servants bowed to their commander. Julian and his wives only nodded. Theoretically, they didn’t need to show her deference before others, but they found it wiser to maintain at least a part of it for now. She was the original member of the royal family, and her subjects wouldn’t receive it well if the new family members appeared smug or felt superior to her. “Let’s go, then,” the princess said after no one presented a protest.

Thalia walked to the front of the group and opened a giant portal with her two-handed sword. The spectacle never ceased to impress Julian. He saw the wariness on the soldiers' faces as they saw reality being ripped apart before their eyes and a strange bricked road in a purple world suddenly appearing.

Knowing it was their duty to walk in front, the soldiers stepped into the portal and started walking on the road that would lead them directly to the Lionheart manor.

“We’re going home,” he whispered, his mind trailing from Tarav to his mother and then to all the residents of Silverhold and his servants. All of them relied on Julian, and even with the weight of responsibility on his shoulders, he was coming to realize he deeply cared for every single one of them. He wanted to be a good lord, a good mage, and now a good king. But beyond all that, he tried to protect everyone he could.

Julian strolled towards his carriage with his heart warm and determination set. The previous night had tired him endlessly, and all he wanted was to sit for a while and let the horses do the heavy lifting. As he started to open the small door, he felt a warm touch on his skin. The hand quickly withdrew itself, and when he looked over his shoulder, he realized it was Princess Anasthasia looking at him with inquiring eyes.

“Everything is going according to the plan, your grace?” he asked.

“Oh, yes. I just wanted to thank you for supporting my decision back in the rally,” she said in her usual, regal tone.

“It was my pleasure.” Julian moved his hand back to the handle, but then turned to look at her. “Do you want to join me, princess?”

“Oh,” she said, surprised. “I would love it.”

She hesitated, her face slowly turning red. Julian had never seen the stoic princess show such emotion, and he couldn’t contain the smile that spread across his face. He fought it, not wanting to embarrass further the princess, who cleared her throat and made every effort to return to her regal posture.

“To be honest, I thought it would be wise if we got to know each other better. Our union is nigh.”

“Indeed, your grace,” he said, waving his hand for her to enter the carriage first. She slightly bowed her head and entered the vehicle.

Upon seeing the scene, his wives moved towards the second carriage without saying a word. Julian didn’t have the opportunity to examine Rayra’s expression, but he could bet she wasn’t happy.

Julian followed the princess and sat across from her. She kept her hands on her knees, tapping them occasionally. Her shaking legs betrayed her stern grimace.

“So, what does your grace want to know about me?” Julian asked, fighting the urge to sprawl on the seat and rest his back.

“Please, if there was no reason before to call me your grace, there’s close to none now. We’re about to be married.”

“A marriage I didn’t know about until it was announced.” Julian let the words slip from his mouth, but he didn’t regret them. He thought the idea was good, and he was totally on board. However, he wasn’t the kind of man who didn’t stand his ground.

“For that, I am sorry,” the princess said, and Julian felt the earnestness in her words. “I was afraid you would deny it. I devised this plan on the night you left for the Twelve Isles; in my mind, it was our best chance to unify the kingdom. I was going to discuss it with you, but when Liz arrived and told us what happened, I needed to act while the dukes were here.”

“I understand, your grace,” Julian replied stoically, and the princess shifted her head and weight on the seat, clearly bothered by his insistence on calling her by the title.

“I see you’re not so prone to forgiveness.”

“I mostly am,” Julian replied with a smile. “How could I get angry at the woman who wants to crown me the King of Alinera?”

“Still, you’re displeased with the way things were dealt with, and for that, I’m truly sorry.”

“Being pleased is outside of my duties. I am a subject and now a soldier, and I’ll follow the commands given by my superiors.”

“I see,” she said, seeming to understand what Julian really meant. “In the future, I’ll consult you before I make any other decisions that involve you or your wives. I want us to have a real relationship. I know I’ve messed it up with my declaration, but please forgive me, so we can work toward a loving marriage.”

“That would please me profoundly, Ana. Thank you for saying you’re sorry. It means a lot to me, and I want our marriage to be a loving relationship as well,” Julian replied as he felt the carriage shift its wheels from the smooth floor of the castle to the tortuous one of the cobbled road.

Upon hearing her name, the princess grinned, and Julian saw her release a deep breath.

“I’m relieved.” She let the words slip as her back sank into the seat, and he allowed himself to do the same as she closed her eyes and faced the carriage ceiling. “I’m so tired,“ she sighed.

Upon hearing those words, Julian moved to the princess’s side while her eyes followed him all the way through.

“Turn your back to me.”

“Why?” she asked, already turning in a surprisingly obedient way. Julian liked it.

“Maybe I can relieve your stress a little.” Julian moved his hands to her shoulders and watched her back instantly stiffen. “It’s fine; it’s just a massage.”

“Those never worked with me,” she replied. Even though he couldn’t see her face, Julian knew she was smiling.

“You’ve never had one of mine.” He moved his fingers along her shoulders, gently pulling the straps of her dress to the side. Her skin was soft and pale, and when he moved her hair out of the way, he saw the small hairs on her back stand on end. She turned her head and looked at him from the corner of her eye. There was something there he hadn’t seen yet.

He savored that gaze and let his hands travel across her back, massaging it with his thumbs in slow waves, feeling the tension escaping her body. He let his hands move deeper inside her dress, feeling the curve of her lower back as he worked on his massage.

“That’s divine,” she moaned, and her voice reached his ears like a siren’s song.

He could smell her perfume, and it was intoxicating. Julian kept massaging her skin as he got closer, feeling the aroma entering his nostrils. He inhaled near her neck, watching her shiver, and rested a small kiss there.

“Julian…” Her voice seemed lost in time, his name becoming longer than it was, and when he felt the urge to kiss her again, she moved away. She raised the dress’s straps and leaned her back against the carriage door.

“We can’t,” she said, her face red and her breath shallow.

“Can’t we?”

“I mean … I really want to, but not until your wives accept me. I don’t want a rift in our family even before it’s been finalized by us moving too quickly, physically,” Ana replied promptly, staring at Julian.

“I can understand that. There’s some … conflict, but they’re ready to accept you.”

“I want more than a grudging acceptance. My goal is for us to have a loving family, so I’ll need to see it with my own eyes.”

“I agree and respect your decision.” Julian replied with a smirk.

“Don’t smile at me like that,” she said, averting her gaze. “You have no idea how hard it is to resist you.”

“And you have no idea how much I want you,” he said, caressing her face. She leaned towards it like a cat demanding affection, only to realize it and move away again.

Julian crossed to the other seat, feeling the commotion in his body slowly easing as he looked towards her.

“Your back … you’re really under a lot of stress.”

“You have no idea,” she said, and upon seeing Julian’s raised brows, she apologized. “Honestly, you’re probably the only one who knows it.”

“Yes, I can imagine it. That’s the duty of the strong, though.”

“What?”

“To help those who cannot help themselves.”

“It’s a heavy burden,” she said in a low tone, the words seemingly reluctant to leave her mouth.

“And you carry it, anyway.”

“I have to, even if I don’t consider myself strong.”

“I know a thousand people who were rallied in the street yesterday who would disagree.” Julian focused back on her and adjusted himself on the seat, locking eyes with the princess again.

“It was a lucky strike,” she blushed and leaned her elbow against the carriage window as she looked at the purple world outside.

“Have you ever been here?”

“Many times,” her voice was distant, and her gaze totally devoted to the far horizon.

“She loved this place.”

“Ariel?” Julian asked, shifting his weight on the seat and paying attention to the princess. Ariel was a friend of Thalia, who had died at the hands of the Twin Snakes as a way to punish Thalia. For all Julian could see, they had struck the princess as well. She changed her look towards him again, and any semblance of stoicism was replaced by a sudden grimace of pain that traveled through her until she appeared normal again.

“Did she tell you?”

“Not quite. Makao told me a bit, and I pieced a few things together,” Julian replied, and that seemed to bring some peace to the princess, who shifted her attention back to the road outside.

“She was a noble from one of the Flying Pearl families, but despite that, she had no plans to be a court member or marry. While the other girls and I talked about our teenage crushes, she bombarded me with her dreams of becoming a member of the Royal Guard.”

“I bet that caused her a lot of problems.”

“You have no idea,” the princess said with a grin. “Our numbers are mostly composed of men, but we have no rules against women joining. Officially, she could do it, but her family stood in the way. Her father tried to appease her by giving her a sword tutor and then a mage one, hoping to see if she would get bored and give up.”

“But she wasn’t the type to give up.”

“No, she wasn’t. When she met Thalia for the first time and saw a girl her age joining the training for the Royal Guard, she was thrilled. She was such a sweetheart that she never felt jealous of Thalia; she was happy for her even before we became friends. She came to visit me all the time and used any excuse to ask Thalia to join us. In the end, maybe it was my fault,” she concluded with a deep sigh, and Julian could see her eyes watering.

“It wasn’t your fault,” Julian said, stretching his hand and touching hers. “Thalia blames herself as well. It’s destroying both of you.”

“I blamed her for so long. Now, I see…. If I hadn’t pressured my father to have Ariel to join the Guard, she would never have been on that patrol with Thalia, and those monsters would never have done what they did.”

“You had no way of knowing,” Julian insisted, gripping her hand firmly. “You did something good. You helped your friend fulfill her dream. Neither you nor Thalia could have predicted she would be the one to suffer the consequences of actions you didn’t know would have such extreme consequences. This cycle of guilt needs to stop.”

“You’re probably right,” she finally said as she returned the gesture with her eyes clear of tears, and she managed a smile.

“You should talk with her.”

“Maybe,” she replied, caressing his hand gently. “Now, I know why you have such amazing women in love with you.”

“Oh?” Julian said, unable to hide his surprise. “And why's that?”

“Everyone is obliged to listen to me. Since childhood, I could borrow anyone’s ears, until I realized that and found they were only appeasing me with a facade of attention. Suddenly, talking didn’t seem so pleasant anymore. We’ve only spoken a handful of times, but on every occasion, I felt you were really listening to me.”

“Isn’t everyone like this, princess?” Julian asked with a smile.

“You’d be surprised, Julian,” she said before returning her gaze to the window and releasing his hand.

Julian watched her for a few seconds before gazing at the window at his side. He couldn’t see the cobbled road below the carriage, but the endless purple sky was everywhere. He didn’t even realize when he closed his eyes.

When he opened them again, half an hour had passed, and they were already crossing through the other end of Thalia’s portal. Julian's eagerness to see his house again and hug his mother was quickly replaced by a sudden chill on his skin. He felt like his heart had sunk into his stomach as he watched the Lionheart Manor burning before his eyes.

Chapter Four

“Move! Move the princess to safety!” The voice of the grizzly soldier, whom Julian now recognized as the Royal Guard’s captain, echoed through the open air. It was almost drowned out by the sound of wood crackling and walls falling. Julian jumped out of the carriage as the soldiers made a U-turn, trying to bring it back inside the portal.

“Make sure the portal stays open in case the danger is still near,” Julian instructed Thalia, who was already out of her carriage at the front of the queue. He dashed towards the manor as if hypnotized by the terrible sight. They had been teleported to the middle of the crops, the same place he had first met Thalia. From there, he could see the flames had already engulfed parts of the whole manor.

He saw something thrown from inside the manor’s outer walls towards the roof, but if the person was trying to extinguish the fire, they were failing miserably. I hope it’s not you, Tarav. What are you thinking, standing in the middle of a fire? Julian thought, already running towards his house.

Before he reached the midpoint, a figure caught up to him from the side. Rayra, already in her fox form, was running fast towards the flames with Liz at her back. The brunette extended one hand to Julian, who grabbed it and launched himself onto Rayra’s back.

“Liz, you’re on the fire. Use all your mana if needed. Rayra, you’re with me to rescue them.”

“I’ll do it, but I’m not sure if my mana is enough.” Julian barely caught Liz’s voice beneath the gust of wind.

“We have lots of Soul Shards from the beach. Use what you need, and don’t worry about it,” Julian said, gripping his wife's waist as Rayra accelerated. As they approached the blazing scene, it became clear that the man standing in the middle of the fire was Tarav. Near him, other figures rapidly ran with buckets of water from the well and threw it on the manor stairs as if they could prevent the flames from spreading.

Julian appreciated the loyalty of his servants, who chose to try to extinguish the fire at the manor instead of saving their own houses. The stable was already burned to the ground alongside the workers' quarters and the garden.

The smoke clouds weren’t as thick at the manor house, giving Julian some hope that they could still manage to save most of it, but not with the workers risking their lives so close to the fire.

“Tarav!” Julian yelled, but the butler didn’t hear. He kept receiving buckets and throwing water vigorously against the manor walls and steps. “Tarav!” Julian called again, and amidst the flames, he saw the butler’s face turn in his direction. The workers carrying buckets stopped in the middle of the way and stared at Julian, unable to continue their efforts. Julian could only guess their thoughts, but he bet they considered him an illusion. He was there, though, and Tarav realized it soon. “Where’s Mom?” Julian yelled, ready to continue to the flames and into the building if necessary to save his mother.

“She’s safe, sir!” Tarav shouted as loud as he could, then addressed the people near him, “Fall back! Fall back! Baroness Liz is here!” The workers, relieved, started moving towards Julian and Rayra, who had halted near the scorched ground. Rayra danced on her four legs, whimpering. The ground was too hot for her form to travel on, but Julian was as close as he dared to go. Tarav rushed quickly, waving his hands for the workers to proceed.

Julian dismounted from Rayra’s back and rushed toward them. Come on, Tarav! They know the way! he screamed inside his mind, already knowing very well the butler wouldn’t move a foot before ensuring the safety of the other people.

However, the fires and old walls didn’t care for the old butler’s desires. Just as Tarav moved the last worker toward Julian and his companions at the gates of the Lionheart Manor, the wall he had fiercely fought to keep watered started to crumble rapidly. The crackling sounds masked the noise of the rock and wood debris falling toward Tarav.

Julian wasted no time as he outstretched his hand and prepared a powerful arcane blast. The ball of energy flew fast, passing mere inches from Tarav’s shoulders before finding the exterior walls of the manor falling to the ground. Tarav leaped to escape the collapse, but Julian knew instantly he would have been hit if he hadn’t blown up the wall. Nevertheless, Tarav was struck. As the wall turned into hundreds of pieces of debris, one of the rocks flew directly towards Tarav’s head.

Even amidst the crackling flames and crumbling walls, Julian thought he heard a chilling CRACK sound as the rock reached Tarav and dropped him limp to the ground. Julian felt his heart sink to the depths of his stomach as he rushed towards the old butler lying on the ground. Rayra tried to follow him, but the ground was too hot to walk with her fox paws. The workers rushed past Julian, but he didn’t see their faces; all his attention was on the man lying on the ground.

When Julian reached Tarav’s position, he grabbed him with both hands and heaved his limp body onto his shoulders, carrying the man with speed and force, not wanting to think even for a second that he couldn’t be all right. The butler’s hands dangling limply from side to side weren’t helping.

He reached the spot where Rayra waited for him. Rayra helped Julian put the old butler on the ground while Liz gathered immense amounts of water from the ground. She had already extinguished some of the fire, and Julian could see everything becoming wetter by the millisecond as the water poured from the ground and created an immense and dense wall.

At that moment, Julian couldn’t care less about the magic. The house could burn if that meant Tarav wouldn’t die. Not like this, Julian thought, finally looking at the old man’s face. He was serene, but behind him, a pool of blood began to form.

“Do something,” Julian pleaded with Rayra, who was already working her magic, passing her hand over the older man’s forehead.

“I’ll do my best,” Rayra said, but her grim expression betrayed her words. Julian scanned his surroundings, looking for help, and saw the princess close to the carriage with the soldiers around her. Ranabi and his father strode towards them.

“Quickly! Here!” Julian waved to the goddess, who ran at full speed, nearly matching her animal form. However, when she stopped before Tarav, all semblance of urgency died. She looked down at Julian’s eyes, then at Rayra, and her expression was compassionate.

“No!” Julian shouted, looking at Tarav again. He could see the old man’s chest barely moving up and down. He wasn’t dead; he knew it. “He’s still alive! Save him.”

“He’s already making his way,” she muttered so quietly that Julian almost didn’t hear.

“It doesn’t matter. He’s breathing. You can do it, can’t you?”

“Life must follow its course.”

“It didn’t matter when you were the one on the line, right?” Julian snapped, standing up quickly and facing the goddess. His face was flushed with sudden anger he wasn’t sure he could contain.

“You’re right.”

Julian started to raise his finger to point at the goddess, prepared for her to deny saving Tarav for whatever godly reason she might have, but she followed her words with a quick crouch and a wave of her hand. Green magic poured from her fingertips and traveled across Tarav’s face like water. The liquid moved from his cheeks to the top of his back, and the blood that had pooled on the ground slowly started to disappear, almost as if it was returning to the inside of Tarav’s body.

Tarav’s breathing accelerated, his face reddened by the second, while Julian stood frozen, watching everything with conflicted feelings. He felt someone approaching and realized it was his father, who wrapped an arm around his shoulder.

“I suppose your mother is okay, right?”

“Tarav told me she’s safe,” Julian muttered, his gaze locked with the goddess, bringing life back to Tarav before his eyes.

“I asked only to be sure. Tarav wasn’t going to leave her in danger.”

“He wouldn’t,” Julian said again, watching the older man slowly open his eyes. “I need to change this,” Julian muttered.

“Change what, son?”

“Nothing, Father. I’m just thinking out loud,” Julian lied, reassuringly smiling at his father, who only nodded.

At that moment, Julian decided he wouldn’t strive to become stronger, to prove something to himself or others, nor would he do so merely out of a desire to protect. Liz crashed a giant wave against the manor and extinguished the flames into a giant hiss that erupted into a massive gray cloud. Julian realized he needed to be stronger, to not depend on the whims of a god.

Chapter Five

“Where’s Mother, Tarav, and what in the Last happened here?” Julian asked, slowly giving Tarav some water.

The old man drank diligently and gripped Julian's hand tightly when he gulped the liquid down.

“We received news of an attack on Silverhold. A horde of monsters destroying the city and slaying the denizens. Your mother went as soon as she heard the creatures’ descriptions.”

“Dragonborns.”

“Yes, master.”

Julian could see the old butler had no idea he had nearly died less than a minute ago. When Ranabi asked if he felt good after she ended the cure, he laughed, saying he felt more than good upon seeing such beauty. Julian would’ve laughed if he hadn’t had other things to care about. “She went with the soldiers and many workers who wanted to fight.”

“She had the enchanted weapons?”

“Yes, my lord. I stayed here to keep everything in order, but we were attacked as soon as they disappeared on the horizon. A monster came from the skies, its wings larger than the manor. When I looked up, I saw it spitting waves of fire on our walls. The fire was so hot that it melted some of the rocks.”

“Anyone died?”

“Some of the workers who were sleeping are most certainly dead, my lord. It happened so fast and was so violent that they didn’t even scream. I’m sure they were there because I organized today’s schedule myself.”

“We’ll avenge them,” Julian said with determination as he gripped the old man's hand more tightly. “Now, you rest and help salvage what you can. I’ll head to Silverhold, and if this creature comes back, just run.”

“Right, sir. I’m glad you’re back.”

“I’m glad you're back as well,” Julian said. The butler raised an eyebrow in surprise but said nothing. Julian patted him on the shoulder and heaved himself up, walking towards the princess’s carriage in the distance. Thalia still held the portal open, but no one was close to it anymore. There was no sign of danger, and Anasthasia seemed eager to move ahead and understand the situation. Julian gave her a quick report of what had happened, and she assumed a thoughtful expression.

“What do you suggest we do?” she asked.

“I’ll go to Silverhold now with my companions to help in the city. We should send Thalia back to the capital with someone else to alert your guard and make sure this isn’t a coordinated attack.”

“That sounds like a good plan. My soldiers and I will join you.”

“Are you sure?”

“The safest place I can be right now is around you. We have capable soldiers, and nearly everyone here is a mage.”

“I agree.” Julian smiled, and she returned the gesture. He liked how she thought and looked when she was pleased. Her cheeks were adorned by two small dimples that gave her an almost naughty look without detracting from her regality. “Can you join Thalia, Liz?” Julian asked, and Liz seemed surprised for a second before nodding.

“What if there’s a fire in Silverhold?” Liz asked, raising a good point. Before Julian could come up with a solution, Ranabi chimed in.

“I’ll deal with it if it comes to that. I have a few ways of extinguishing a fire.

“Good,” Julian replied, trying to show some gratitude to the goddess. She was trying to help, nevertheless.

That would be perfect. With just one move, Julian made Rayra and the princess closer to each other on one mission, while Liz and Thalia would have some opportunity to bond more. Only the Last knew how much trouble Liz had had accepting Thalia’s company around them when they first met.

“Be careful,” Julian said to Thalia and Liz, who came close and kissed his lips before waving and entering the still-open portal, which closed seconds after they passed through it.

Rayra stood a few feet back, talking with Julian's father and Tarav. She checked his wounds and ensured Ranabi had not missed anything about the older man’s injuries. On the other hand, the goddess stood away from everyone else, her eyes contemplative, as if the horizon held a secret for her.

Upon reaching the captain, he spoke in a firm and loud tone.

“We’ll head to Silverhold now. Command all of your men to raise their weapons for me to bestow upon them an enchantment. We are about to fight mighty beasts, stronger than any man. They will gladly tear you in half. However, you’ll be the first soldiers in the army to kill these creatures. Let’s create something worthy of the bard’s songs today.”

“You heard the Baron, men. Raise your weapons!” the grizzly captain commanded, and the soldiers with metal blades raised them while the mages—the majority—created their blades by hand. Julian let a string of his power travel toward the weapons and felt it energizing them. The blades would now be capable of dealing with the dragonborn's thick skin and scales, but the soldiers' bodies would still be fragile compared to the mighty beasts.

“I love your determination, soldiers, and the power I gave you is one to be reckoned with.” Julian grinned, and the soldiers replied with an 'Ay!'.

“However, you must be careful when dealing with those monsters. They can end a man with one well-executed attack. Tread carefully in the fight, strike wisely, and do not die.”

Julian saw pride in the soldiers’ eyes; even the captain smiled at Julian, showing no sign of inconvenience at him giving the orders.

“Great! That's the spirit,” Julian cheered with a smile that slowly died as he moved back to his father, Tarav, and Ranabi.

“You’ll stay here with Tarav, Father, and⁠—”

“No, Son. I need to go. If your mother is in need, I must be there.”

Julian let the protest die in his throat and only nodded to his father before shifting his gaze towards Ranabi.

“I respect you, Ranabi, and all you did until now. Still, I need you totally on board here. You can’t waver like you almost did before. When we face Fenrir, there will be no time for consideration,” Julian said, and the goddess nodded with a knowing expression.

He tried to be understanding with Ranabi. For all Rayra had said, the goddess had always been a pacifist. The beastfolk considered her the goddess of Life, the one that preserved the cycles and promoted peace. Julian asked her to become the herald of life by using her power to protect the greater number of people, or to help him, at least. It was hard to do, but he preferred that the goddess was unhappy with her involvement in a world where the dragonborn didn’t rule, rather than the opposite.

Rayra smiled reassuringly to the goddess again, but Julian felt her wavering hadn’t sat well with the kitsune, but she understood Ranabi way better. Rayra looked back with a frown over the destruction the dragon had caused to the manor through the fire. They hadn’t been together long, but she had grown fond of the Lionheart manor. It was there where they discovered she was pregnant, where they had fought and laughed. In the middle of Silverhold, he had met her for the first time, and now Fenrir threatened to destroy all of it, probably on a whim due to Julian frustrating his plans.

“Are you ready?” Julian asked Rayra, who didn’t reply. Instead, she changed to her fox form and waved her tail, beckoning Julian to get on her back. “We are going to run ahead, just follow the road,” Julian commanded the troops.

The road was as it had always been. If any bystander passed there, they would never have thought the city was under a terrible attack. Julian felt the gush of wind on his face and remembered the day he arrived at Silverhold for the first time after exiting the academy. Everything had changed since then, and at the same time, nothing seemed to have changed. His house was crumbling again, and he was heading to Silverhold, hoping to save not just it but the whole world. His mother was somewhat missing again, and he had no idea what awaited him when he crossed the next hill.

“I have you now,” Julian muttered, caressing the fur of Rayra’s fox form as hers, Liz's, and Thalia’s faces flashed in his mind. That was different now; he had been gifted with three amazing people in his life, and soon there would be a fourth. It all came with a lot of hard work with his heart in the right place. That moved Julian away from any despair, knowing that they would persevere together and overcome the obstacles. That, and the excitement of his mana core bursting with the desire to burn the dragonborn's scales.

He felt Rayra purring under his touch and could feel her heart pumping against his body. He felt her excitement and gripped her fur firmly as she sped towards the city. Julian considered using his new ability to create mana platforms in the air to scout from above and see what was happening in Silverhold. However, as soon as he reached the top of the hill, he was confronted by the sight of three pairs of wings soaring above the city’s buildings as if searching for something.

Only three? he thought as he watched the creatures. Rayra continued rushing toward the city on her four legs. At that moment, he saw another creature erupting from the middle of the streets into the air, carrying someone in its claws and flying high into the sky, much higher than its companions. As the monster reached the clouds, it released the person in its grip.

The screams echoed for moments that seemed to last endlessly. Julian gritted his teeth as he heard the person collide with the ground, instantly killing them. The monsters were seemingly having the time of their lives.

Another dragonborn appeared in the skies and performed the same disturbing action. This one even dropped the victim, only to grab them again in the middle of the fall and re-release them, just like Thalia had described her experience with the general dragonborn before.

Julian looked over his shoulder and saw his entourage slowly catching up with them. He was worried about his father's reaction upon seeing the creatures, but he knew very well the man wouldn’t give up ongoing with them. Be careful, Father. I’m coming, Mom, Julian thought as he leaned on Rayra’s back and moved his mouth towards her fox ears.

“Go as fast as you can, love. I’ll keep an eye on those in the air.” As if proclaiming something she was already profoundly waiting for, Rayra somehow found the strength to bound forward even faster, her legs not touching the ground for several seconds and only slowing her movement as they approached the cobbled stones that signaled the road ended, and Silverhold’s streets began.

The dragonborn in the skies seemed oblivious to Julian’s approach, their eyes fixed on the streets below. According to Julian’s calculations, they were near the castle where Julian’s administration of the barony took place. They acted as if they were fishing. While near the city’s entrance, Julian could hear the sounds of fighting—and those weren’t the sounds of dragonborns easily winning their fights.

“Foul creatures. They don’t care if their kin are dying as long as they are pleased,” Julian muttered as Rayra finally arrived at the city gates sprawled to both sides. No soldiers were stationed on the walls, but on the first street, Julian heard swords clashing—or at least, that’s what he thought it was.

As soon as he turned the corner, he leaped from Rayra’s back, and she turned herself into her standard form. He created a blast in his hand as the kitsune nocked an arrow toward the sound ahead. In front of them, Lady Marcella Lionheart stood tall with two short swords, one in each hand, dancing around two dragonborns. One was a female with green scales and eyes, while the second was a male with pitch-black scales. They were both the same size as Marcella, but they had immense weapons seemingly made out of bone, and when they moved, they became blurs. Julian thought several times about releasing the blast, but it seemed clear he would miss every time, and he couldn’t risk hurting Marcella.

He decided to aim on two figures flying above Marcella. Two other dragonborns were approaching the fight. Julian aimed at one and Rayra the other. The creatures kept dodging and advancing over and over while they rushed towards his mother, but she didn’t seem to need help. When the approaching creatures realized the same, they flew away in fear of closing on the arcane wielder.

His mother kept dancing and dodging the enemy attacks. A stranger could even consider her having fun, and Julian didn’t doubt a part of her really was.

The years she had spent inside the mirror realm had given Marcella proficiency in fighting dragonborns that no one else had. With a weapon that could hurt them, she was unstoppable. The creatures rushed towards her together as if they had rehearsed the movement. They struck their bone weapons down, aiming at both of Marcella’s shoulders, but she stopped both attacks with her swords and, as the monsters exerted force against the blades, rolled the two weapons over the bone blades and shoved them aside.

The movement caught the dragonborns by surprise, making them lose their footing. Marcella sank her feet into the ground and leaped with the two short swords, slicing through the air. Julian counted five swings until she finally dropped to the ground. The monsters before her raised their weapons to counterattack. The male’s sword fell with a loud THUMP as it realized its arm tendons had been sliced, and it couldn’t strike with the sword or its claws again.

The female one didn’t even lower her sword as well. A sea of blood poured from her neck as she watched in shock, a cut deepening and widening at the middle of its neck. Before the female could reach the ground, Marcella ran towards the other dragonborn and slashed its neck as it was about to flee to find its friends.

“Sometimes I forget how amazing your mom is,” Rayra said in a mutter.

“Me too,” Julian replied, realizing his eyes were wide upon seeing the display. “I wish I could do something like this.”

Rayra had a confused expression on her face. “You do just like that. Maybe faster.”

“Really? It’s hard to see that way.”

“I know,” she said with a smile as they watched Marcella approaching. She had a cut near her right eye, a claw mark. Besides that, she had no wounds.

“Son! You arrived. Thanks to the Last,” Marcella put her hands on her knees and panted, looking to the ground and then to Julian. She then stopped, realization dawning upon her as her eyes widened. “Your father?”

Julian smiled broadly. “We did it, Mom. He’s on his way here now. We have more soldiers on the way as well.”

“That’s great, son,” she said, sheathing one of the swords and putting one hand on his shoulder. She darted her eyes to Rayra and nodded. “I was starting to get worried. There were at least twenty when we arrived. I killed five and saw my men killing the other three, but we got separated. The last time I saw them, they were near the Mages’ Guild on their way to the castle.”

“We saw some of the monsters flying above there torturing people for fun.”

“Son…” she said, and Julian watched her eyes slowly inundated by sadness. “What they did to the people … They are worse than cats playing with mice. I’ve never seen anything like this.”

“That’s why we must end this before they hurt anyone else.”

Marcella nodded, and they started moving towards the Mages’ Guild's direction.

They checked every corner of the city, trying to find any signs of the dragonborn on the ground while also checking to ensure that none of the creatures in the sky had spotted them.

Julian found no dragonborn, Silverhold’s soldiers, or anyone from his estate. All he saw were dead bodies. Some had been smashed against the ground, others had severed limbs, and some were without a single wound. What connected all of them was the certainty of their death. Marcella gritted her teeth and let out a low growl as they walked past a market full of corpses. With each step, Julian’s anger grew.

They kept advancing on the side streets, avoiding the broader ones where the airborne dragonborns would get a better vision of them. Julian was confident in their ability to defeat all the dragonborns inside the city. However, he wasn’t sure what else Fenrir had in store for them. If the creature Tarav had mentioned was still nearby, it would be best if he was the one making an ambush and not the contrary.

“Three on the next corner,” Rayra whispered as quietly as she could, but Julian and Marcella heard. She pointed to the corner that connected the street they were on to the main one. Three blocks ahead, they would be in front of the Mages’ Guild and beneath the five dragonborns dropping people from the sky.

“Fast and clean,” Julian instructed as he put another string of arcane magic on their weapons, ensuring they could kill with the right strike.

Julian raised a whip in his left hand and turned the corner with Marcella and Rayra. As Marcella dashed with long strides toward the enemies, the arrow flew from the kitsune's bow. Julian whipped his weapon at the creature in the middle, hoping to slice it in half.

The creatures were only a blur to Julian. He only noticed their gender or scale color when he realized their bodies were already falling to the ground.

Rayra’s arrow reached the first one's brain with a gruesome sound while Marcella cut the throat of the one on the far right in a fast and precise move. The one in the middle had its guts sprawled on the street as Julian’s whip cut it in half perfectly—the mana burning its skin and sending a nauseating stench into the air.

They held their breath and waited. The next step would be to do something similar to the ones soaring above on the main street. They only needed to be sure they were safe.

Marcella and the soldiers had killed eight dragonborns. They killed three more, and in the skies, five soared. Out of the twenty Marcella had initially seen, only four remained unseen. They’re probably fighting the soldiers, Julian thought as he prepared to move toward the soaring monsters on the main street. They were all made of red scales, and Julian couldn’t wait to mar them with their blood.

However, as soon as he stepped out from cover for the first time, he heard something crashing against the ground. He felt his heart sink into his stomach as the monsters in the sky started to flap their wings towards them. The object thrown towards them revealed itself just as he realized the approaching threat. Before Julian, the head of one of Silverhold’s soldiers bounced over and over until it lay lifeless with its glassy gaze, looking directly at Julian’s face.

The cut on the man’s neck showed the precision of a surgeon or the sharpest weapon of a weapon’s master. Julian knew the dragonborn well enough to know the second was more likely. Four pairs of yellow dragon wings flew furiously towards them from where they had come.

Well hidden beneath the shadows of a nearby alley, four additional creatures dashed towards them with immense speed. Rayra’s movement to nock an arrow stopped midway through as one of the beasts collided with her, their bodies twisting and rolling as she tried to find her footing on the ground again. Before Julian could make a new spell or swing his blade, he, too, was struck by the creatures. Two of them, though. Julian felt the horns of one of the creatures piercing his shoulder while the second one descended a bone sword towards his head. The momentum of the first creature crashing against his torso helped him dodge the second attack, but only increased the searing pain from the monster's attack. Julian could hear its heavy breathing close to his body as he pulled away from the beast.

The creature released Julian as it swung its claws upward, aiming for his chin. He raised his weapons and held them with both hands in a defensive position. The monster’s hand sliced towards Julian’s blade as if it could break it, because the creature was so accustomed to its scales protecting it from every attack that it didn’t expect the sword's edge to be enchanted with arcane magic.

As the monster severed its own fingers on his sword, Julian watched its face become a grimace of shock, pain, and then anger. Julian prepared to strike it with his sword held high and ready to be extended by his spell. As the creature was about to be hit, the second dragonborn deflected the blow with its blade, striking Julian’s sword on the flat part and sending a clanging shake through his right arm.

The injured creature fell back, its wings helping it to hug the distant wall. The one who deflected Julian’s blow wasn’t so lucky. Julian took advantage of his excellent position and struck again, thrusting the blade towards the creature’s chest. The monster imitated Julian’s previous move to defend the strike, but the piercing point of his sword met it. The blade cut through the bone like butter and kept on its deadly path, reaching the creature’s scales and then flesh.

This dragonborn was more intelligent than the other one. As soon as the first drop of blood started to pour from its skin, it raised its feet and kicked Julian away, moving itself towards its wounded friend.

Julian checked his surroundings, searching for Rayra and his mother. Rayra dodged the dragonborn before her, trying to find a window to put an arrow inside its head while Marcella dashed hard toward her enemy. She kept the dragonborn at bay, making Julian’s choice to help Rayra easy.

When she dodged one more strike, Julian came to her aid. His ears were attentive to the other two enemies' movements, and his eyes fixed on the target. She fought a yellow dragonborn with close to no horns, and its body was enveloped by protective scales. This particular monster was thin and fast, just as fast as Rayra herself, making it impossible for her to strike. He needed to upset the balanced scales in her favor. Julian came in swinging, extending his blade and allowing Rayra to fall back.

The monster ducked Julian’s strike, rolling on the ground with its wings enveloping its body. As soon as it stopped moving, its wings spread, and it dashed towards Julian at full speed. The lord dodged to the side, swinging his blade in a wide arc, but the creature was too fast. It didn’t hit Julian, but it wasn’t hit by his strike either. Rayra finally released her magic arrow, and it flew fast towards the monster's head. But the creature was too fast and dodged again.

Just as it was about to fall on the ground and roll again, Rayra’s second arrow found its mark at the top of the creature’s bald head, killing it.

“Great shot,” Julian grunted, turning to see her nocking another arrow to shoot at the enemy Marcella was fighting.

Julian could swear the dragonborn was about to soil its scales. It kept dodging and using its wings to step back, but Marcella was relentless in her pursuit. Rayra stopped for a second, considering whether it was right to end her mother-in-law's fun. Before she could decide, the two wounded dragonborns rushed towards them again. Rayra changed the direction of her arrow and fired it, but didn’t find its mark. The creatures flew fast, but not as fast as Julian’s whip.

He summoned the weapon and struck quickly to the side, cutting their line to attack them. They halted in position, measuring the distance they could cover to reach them. Julian didn’t give them time. He started walking forward, swinging the whip from one side to the other and giving room for Rayra to shoot another arrow.

The monsters seemed to realize what was happening and prepared to act. What are you going to do? Julian asked himself, ready to strike upwards if they tried to fly to the skies. However, they held their position as the other five dragonborns in the air reached Rayra and Julian from behind.

Julian felt the weight of his chest crashing against the ground as two clawed feet struck his back with force. He heard Rayra’s arrow flying away and watched her fall at his side.

They quickly reacted. Julian turned, already swiping his whip, creating space for him and Rayra to get up, but their advantageous position was now gone. Instead of two dragonborn before them, now there were five, and the one Marcella was fighting turned into three.

The monsters slowly started to move towards them, their eyes attentive to Julian’s left hand holding the whip. They knew he couldn’t kill all of them with one strike. They only needed to attack from different directions. The other three monsters pushed Marcella back as she retreated to join Julian and Rayra.

The trio had their backs to each other while the dragonborns formed a line around them. Suddenly, they, who had been cornering the dragonborns, were the ones being cornered.

Julian was confident he could end the monsters, but he wasn’t so optimistic that he could escape this situation with all his companions alive. That was a risk he wasn’t willing to take. It will be all or nothing, he thought. His knuckles whitened as he gripped his sword and sent waves of mana toward his whip. The weapon shone with a bright blue hue, making all the creatures' eyes glimmer with fear.

“Hold your position. No heroism. Stand together, and we'll slowly push them back,” Julian said. His eyes were focused on the enemy ahead as he shifted his weight from one side to the other, preparing for the worst. He swiped his whip again, enlarging the point, and hit the first of the dragonborns at the line's left edge. The movement was so quick that the creature had no time to react. The mana whip severed the monster's arm at elbow height and then rippled through its stomach. The movement slowed upon slicing through most of the dragonborn’s middle and almost touched the second dragonborn in their improvised line. The wounded dragonborn dropped to the ground in agony as its life slowly bleed out.

Rayra shot an arrow toward the second enemy and hit true just as it was set to fly into the sky. The other six, however, were able to fly in different directions. That was precisely what Julian had feared, and when he swiped his whip once more, he found nothing waiting for him. The enemies scattered in the sky, dodging his swipe and the arrows as they tried to reach him.

Julian dismissed his whip and started throwing Arcane blasts at them. Marcella covered his back while Rayra aimed at the other targets. Julian hit one leg, then three pairs of wings, but the places he hit the creatures only slowed them. For each spell he connected, for each arrow Rayra struck, and for each dragonborn Marcella repelled. Another one came to their aid, slipping an attack through their defense—gifting Julian with claws to the shoulders, face, and chest. If he kept firing Arcane Blasts at them, his mana would eventually end, and he wouldn't have time to reach for his newfound Soul Shards.

As Julian hit one of the monsters right in the chest, exploding its heart, three jumped on Julian, while the fourth and fifth crashed against Rayra and Marcella. Claws, horns, and fangs wounded the lord as he swung his sword violently. He severed one hand just as one of the creatures pierced his arm. He severed one wing as a monster tried to swipe his legs from the ground. He pierced and exploded the third creature as it came close enough to him. The blast pushed the other two away, but Julian was already breathing laboriously.

He still needed to help Rayra, who held her bow tight in one hand as the dragonborn tried to remove it from her and kill her. Marcella faced terrible odds as well due to her injuries. Her foe had managed to make a big cut on her right wrist when she leaned to strike it with a deep thrust. As soon as she was hit, he saw the blade slipping from her hand and the arm not going all the way up.

Shit! Julian cursed inside his mind as he gritted his teeth and rushed toward the dragonborn fighting Rayra. The monster was in a perfect position to have its heart pierced by Julian's sword. However, a blazing light hit his eyes before he could reach it. The hue was so intense that Julian had to cover his eyes. He heard some dragonborn screaming and blinked several times, trying to get a good glimpse of what was happening.

The light slowly faded as he pressed his eyelids against each other. Then he heard a battle cry coming from one end of the street. The guttural voice echoed in his mind, almost recognizable. When he could finally see again, the city had somehow changed. Trees emerged from some of the windows, and the bright sun was covered by tree canopies.

The light and the sudden appearance of the trees kidnapped Julian's attention. Hence, he didn't notice the figure approaching. When he turned his eyes toward the dazed monster he was about to strike, he only had time to see the creature's skull being smashed by a gigantic hammer.

The weapon, seemingly made out of intertwined roots forming the shape of a rough and apparently heavy hammer, smashed the dragonborn's head as if it were a pumpkin. The head of the hammer glistened with the blood that exploded from the creature's skin. The thing looked just like a log of wood enveloped by thick roots; however, the damage it dealt was impressive.

The hammer wasn’t as impressive as the figure holding it.

When Julian's eyes reached the arms of the hammer bearer, his jaw almost dropped. Holding the weapon, his father stood tall, and for just one second, Julian saw the warrior his old man had been. He had never seen him in action, and despite his thin silhouette, simple clothes, and grizzly beard, he had the eyes of a warrior, not those of an old lord.

“Get away from my family!” he yelled as he brought his hammer down once more against the remains of the monster's head. The creatures that weren't still blind had grimaces of pure terror.

“Kill them all!” Julian heard another voice coming from behind his father. It was the captain of the Royal Guard rushing in. They had a powerful aura around them that seemed to repel the dragonborns. Julian watched as more than one of the creatures flinched as the soldiers approached them. The surprise was that they didn't stand a chance against the overwhelming force of Alinera's soldiers.

Julian only watched as the ten soldiers surrounded the dazed dragonborns and killed them with their glowing aura and enchanted weapons. His mother was even more shocked than himself. She stood with both arms aiming at the ground, eyes wide open, and mouth ajar.

“Adrian,” she muttered in a low tone. It had been ages since Julian had heard his father’s name. For him, he had always been Dad, then Father, and in the end, he had become just the old Lord Lionheart. That was the man who had gone mad after losing his wife and pushed away every other person that showed him love. Julian had no idea how he’d react if something similar happened to his wives. Now, Julian finally understood his father.

Amidst all the chaos of the battle, the sun piercing the tree canopies, and the sounds of swords crashing against scales, Julian watched his parents drop their weapons to the ground and dash to meet in the tightest of hugs. Julian could almost feel it. It was hard for him to believe that this was actually happening, but not even a dream could be this happy.

Julian looked at Rayra and saw tears in her eyes, only to realize he had dropped one without even noticing.

“I’m glad I found you,” she whispered, grabbing his hand as they watched his parents embrace. They cried, kissed, and embraced again, and Julian thought that moment would be forever imprinted on his mind.

The sounds of battle slowly faded away as Julian finally took a good look at his surroundings. On the street, the dragonborn corpses lay sprawled. Not a single one of Julian’s companions had perished, and his wounds were all superficial. At the edge of the street, Princess Anasthasia stood tall with one soldier at her side. She had her dagger in hand and a gigantic smile on her face. Julian followed her gaze and realized she was looking directly at his parents. He elbowed Rayra to look in the princess's direction, and when she did, she glared back at Julian, before losing the glare to smile with gentle eyes.

A promising sign, he thought as he kissed Rayra on the cheek. Her ears twitched with pleasure, and she returned the gesture, before gently pushing Julian away, knowing he had work to do.

“Where’s Ranabi?” Julian asked, but a light pierced his eyes before anyone could ask. He looked in the direction it had come from and saw what seemed to be a small mirror reflecting the light toward him. At the top of one of the newborn trees, Ranabi stood on one of the branches, looking down at them with her features hidden by the shadows.

“What do you want from me, Julian Lionheart?”

“Are there more in the city?”

“Orcs fighting at the castle.” She pointed at the castle not far away and then pointed to the sky. “The big one is up there.”

Julian could see nothing in the sky besides the fluffy clouds that adorned the place. If the only indication of a good day was the sky above Silverhold, today would have been perfect, not bloody. However, Julian also knew there was something behind those clouds. They seemed too perfect to be soaring over all of Silverhold, and upon close inspection, one could see they weren’t moving as fast as the wind blew them.

“Come here,” the god whispered, and Julian raised an eyebrow, but before he could ask if she wanted him to climb a freaking tree, he felt his body being elevated to the sky. Roots were being born out of the ground and carrying him to see the goddess at the top of the tree.

“How can you help?” Julian asked bluntly, and the goddess didn't seem bothered by it.

“The next time you want to reach the skies, think about how the wind guides the leaves. Become the wind yourself.”

“That’s too cryptic, Ranabi,” Julian protested, but the goddess raised one hand, looking at him with grave eyes. It was so different from what he was accustomed to.

“That’s not easy for me, child. You are too young to understand, but what I’m doing here right now is something I never thought possible.” She looked into Julian’s eyes and addressed him firmly. “I am trying.”

“I can respect that,” Julian replied in the same tone. “Alright, I need to become the wind. What else?”

“All of you are under my protection now. Your natural healing increases, and the sight of you will hurt Fenrir’s minions. Your father asked me for a hammer, so I gave him one. He’s pretty good with it.”

“He is,” Julian said, looking down and seeing that his parents weren't embracing anymore. Instead, they looked up at Julian apprehensively, while holding hands firmly. He shifted his gaze to the sky again and asked, “What's up there?”

“A primordial dragon,” she said with a sorrowful tone. “A majestic beast who Fenrir forced to join his cause. She was here before Fenrir or even me.”

“I thought you created the world.”

“We didn’t. The world was already here when we gained consciousness. Magic was already here when we woke. Why do you think your friend Makao did magic without a bracelet connecting him to one of the gods? Why do some creatures drop Soul Shards while others don’t?”

Those were all valid questions. Questions that Julian hadn't had the time to ask himself.

“Because there are other forms of power.”

“Exactly, child. You are the purest connection to Cerulex, who mimicked the natural power of this world using his creation through mana. The drake above us is what Cerulex used to understand fire itself and the creatures upon which Fenrir based his twisted idea of a perfect world. The dragonborn believe the mighty beast soaring above us is their god, just as Fenrir is; little do they know Fenrir cares only about control.”

“The creature that burned my house is a god, then?”

“Many called it a god. You can call it that way if you want.”

“I call it an animal on the verge of death,” Julian replied with gritted teeth, his eyes still on the clouds and his thoughts on the dead workers on his estate.

“It’s as ancient and powerful being … some of her kinds were animalistic, but she’s probably not. They can be taught the right ways or be bent by an authoritarian master,” she said, making Julian's mind swirl with ideas. Still, before he could ask more, she put one hand on Julian’s shoulder. He felt a rush of energy traveling through his body and his mana core being washed with life. From the roots beneath him, other ones were born, and they slowly spread towards his feet and leg.

As the roots grew, his armor seemed to melt and integrate itself to the roots, which were bringing new metal plates that closed around his ankles, thighs, and then torso and arms. After a few seconds, his body was completely enveloped by the oddest of armors. Several seemingly disconnected metal plates were intertwined by the thick roots she had summoned. Surprisingly enough, the armor felt light on his body. When he searched for the wounds beneath it, he realized they had healed.

He moved his arms from one side to the other, twisting his waist and testing the armor’s flexibility. It was like being naked, but he had never felt more protected in his whole life. When the last root closed the last gap of metal on the armor, he felt it adjusting one last time on his body. Upon looking at the breastplate, he realized it had a lion printed on it.

“It’s beautiful,” he finally said, looking again at the goddess. Her smile made her eyes close all the way through, and Julian swore he saw more wrinkles on her face than he had previously that day. “But I must say, I don’t think wood and metal are ideal when fighting a creature capable of spitting fire.”

The goddess chuckled as she heard the words.

“You’re funny, Julian. At least when you’re not mad at me for some reason.”

“I’m just trying to keep everyone safe.”

“I understand that, and I admire that about you. That’s why everyone seems to be drawn to you. The spirit inside your grimoire cries when you’re sad and cheers when you’re happy. I can feel her excitement inside your mana core from here.”

That made Julian’s heart warm. He had only good feelings toward the woman he saw when he was close to dying in the mirror realm. Knowing she was still there and still cultivating good feelings toward him made a smile born on his face.

“Princess Anasthasia has already fallen for you as well, young man. I can see what all of them see in you. I can also see why the Arcane considered you worthy. This armor you now bear has a piece of my power inside it. It’ll protect you from evil and help when you become too tired to move on. It will make your fight against Fenrir easier, and when he spits fire upon you, he’ll discover that my magic doesn’t burn very easily.”

“That’s amazing,” Julian muttered, looking again at his armor and caressing it with his gloved hands. On his right hand, the gauntlet he had acquired on his first dungeon delving rested above the armor, making it look even more deadly. He felt well-equipped to face the odds ahead, but something still bothered his mind. “Will he be able to consume the armor's power and use it against me? I can see him smashing me inside this armor.”

“He can do it,” she said gravely, “unless you use the spell I told you before you set off to the Holy Isles.”

“Right,” Julian muttered, remembering the spell capable of expelling all the mana from his body. If he executed it, he would be ready to fight Fenrir without magic. However, it needed to be used at the right moment, or Julian wouldn’t be able to fight other foes or use his arcane powers, which were capable of harming Fenrir’s minions or overwhelming the god.

“I promise I’ll aid your army. Everyone will receive a lighter version of your boon. I’ll not be in your way anymore,” she said. Before Julian could reassure her of his support or apologize for his bad manners, she continued, “I understand your position. I assure you. Keep trailing your path. In the end, your powers may surpass my own.”

Julian had heard several statements about his powers, but none had seemed so strong. He could become a god. That realization hit him like a boulder, and he swallowed it hard. He didn’t even know if he wanted it, but the sheer possibility alone made his head travel to faraway places.

“I’ll do my best. I’ll extinguish Fenrir from this world.”

“That’s our best chance,” Ranabi said with another gentle smile. “Now go, and head to the castle. I’m sure the drake in the skies will come for you.” He then started to descend the same way he had arrived, and as he watched the goddess disappear amidst the tree canopies, he called out to her.

“How do I get out of this armor?” he asked as he desperately searched for the gaps in it or the buckles to remove it, but found only roots and plates of metal. He heard the goddess laughing loudly at the top of the trees, and then she said, her voice starting to fade away,

“Just speak with it. The armor can understand you.”

“It can?” Julian asked, more to himself than the goddess. His mind was still wrapping itself around the notion of so many inanimate objects with their own wills around him.

When he reached the ground, Princess Anasthasia, his parents, and Rayra waited for him with worry, happiness, and urgency.

Marcella and Adrian rushed to embrace their son, and he returned the gesture with a firm grip. His father grunted beneath his tight hug, but didn’t ask him to let go.

“Finally, we are together,” Julian muttered, kissing the tops of the heads of his father and mother. When had he gotten so much taller than his father? For all Julian could remember, they had been the same size.

Marcella tried to say something, but her words got lost in her throat, and she started to cry again. Julian had never seen his mother cry like that, not even when they met inside the mirror realm. However, the realization of seeing her family reunited for the first time after almost ten years apart weighed too heavily on her. The woman cried like a child. As if he was the parent and not the other way around, Julian consoled his mother with all the love he could muster. After a couple of minutes of her gasps, she was finally able to say,

“Nice armor, Son.” She sniffled, wiping her tears away. His father had his emotions more under control and helped Julian calm Marcella. “I see you’ve already brought another wife to our home. She’s quite pretty and seems to be a nice lady, but I’m starting to fear we'll soon not have space for all your wives.” She moved her eyes toward Anasthasia and awkwardly smiled.

The princess instantly blushed profusely, and Rayra started to chuckle hard, controlling herself not to laugh. Adrian tried to remain stoic, but he was embarrassed.

Feeling the change in the room, Marcella looked at her surroundings before addressing Julian in a hush.

“Did I do something wrong?”

“No, Mother. You’re fine,” he whispered before holding her by the shoulder and bringing her close to Anasthasia. “This is Princess Anasthasia, our princess⁠—”

“Oh!” Marcella gasped, her face reddening by the millisecond.

“You’re not wrong, at least not entirely. We'll marry soon, intending to unify the kingdom against Fenrir’s forces.”

Marcella’s eyes darted from her son to the princess, shock stamped on her face as she tried to come up with words but failed over and over until she finally said, “It looks like every time my son goes outside, I gain a new daughter,” Marcella said, and for one moment the whole street was silent.

Until one of the soldiers laughed, and then others did the same. After a couple of seconds, everyone shared the laugh, and even Princess Anasthasia chuckled with one hand over her mouth.

“I just hope you’re good with names; soon, there will be a dozen others to remember,” Marcella continued, and everyone laughed even harder, making Julian's cheeks burn. Suddenly, the joke had fallen into his lap instead of his mother’s, but he could take one or another joke. It was better than having a bad mood surrounding them. The situation was already dire enough, but just like people tend to smile at funerals, the crowd gathered on the street seemed—just for a few seconds—oblivious to the reality.

“Last time I checked, harems are the norm,” Julian stated, apologetically raising his hands to the sky.

“You have four wives now, Julian. When I met you not long ago, you had zero,” Rayra said with a grin from ear to ear as she caught her breath.

“Four?” Marcella asked, her eyebrows raised.

“Oh, for the Last,” Julian sighed and then fell into the same laughter as the others.

“What did she mean by four, honey?” Marcella asked Adrian as they started moving away from the street. Their laughter slowly faded away as they faced the castle ahead, but fear didn’t cripple any of their hearts.

Chapter Six

They trailed through the streets as fast as they could. With the death of the dragonborn and none soaring again in the skies, some of Silverhold’s residents started to appear at the windows and doors. They watched as Julian and his companions made their way towards the castle.

The wounded on the street were being tended by Rayra, whose glow was more potent than anyone else there. Julian suspected that Ranabi was still somewhere, energizing her ally, but had removed herself from the fray. Julian didn’t feel bad about it at all. Earnestly, the goddess had just bestowed upon him a great power, and he felt it from the tip of his hair to the point of his toes.

The common folk of Silverhold muttered Julian’s name as they walked the streets. Some kneeled upon seeing him glowing with a faint yellow light and the root armor. Close behind, Anasthasia helped Rayra create metal platforms to move those who most needed it. Julian understood the kitsune; but she didn’t know Ana like Julian did. He knew her heart was in the right place, and she was ready to be a part of their family. Still, Rayra’s problem was more aligned with authority itself, and considering her exile from her homeland, he couldn’t blame her.

Even with those feeling at play, Rayra worked close with Anasthasia, and Julian even saw the kitsune smiling when the princess helped one of the wounded. Slowly but surely, they would get along. Julian had faith in his wife and the smile she portrayed made him remember why he loved her in the first place.

“She isn’t that bad,” Rayra told Julian a few seconds later as she walked towards another wounded.

“I know. So, are you fine with it now?”

“Maybe. Not the time to discuss it, but now I can see how one more person could add to our family.” She finished the conversation and Julian grinned from ear to ear, meeting Anasthasia's gaze at the distance. She returned the gesture before returning to comfort the people.

Some of the folks who exited their houses recognized the princess. Contrary to his mother, they hadn’t been locked in a distant realm for years. Everyone had seen a picture of Anasthasia or seen her face minted on their coins. They kneeled and thanked the princess, who replied with slight bows and smiles. The terror they had just gone through slowly faded as Julian and the Princess’s presence became known.

“The ones who can take the south exit from the town and group there. We’re here to end your suffering, but we still have enemies inside our dear city,” Julian said firmly, gesturing for one of the soldiers to go ahead and spread the news. “An ancient dragon is coming, and I don’t want any of you near when it arrives.” The folks of Silver Hold gulped and nodded. Some entered their houses and grabbed any belongings they could carry, while others ran for the exit.

Good, Julian thought as he watched the city slowly being evacuated. The castle walls were near, and Julian could see its big open gates. He hadn’t spent much time inside the place, considering it more fitting to rule from his manor. He had delegated some of the best people under his command to use the castle as the headquarters for the barony government. He had even allocated a whole wing of the castle for the people who had lost their jobs and lived on the streets due to Strazz’s poor administration.

Tarav had told them not long ago that most people were already preparing to return to their own homes once their confiscated homes were returned. The news had washed Julian’s heart with happiness, but now his heart panged inside his chest. I should’ve been able to help you sooner, Julian thought, realizing way too late that his thoughts were too heavy. He felt a shallow slash of guilt in his soul and swallowed it.

That’s the duty of the strong, he told himself, putting his heart in check as the castle’s keep became close enough for some of the soldiers to rush towards the stairs before the rest of the group. Their instincts to scout and prepare to protect their princess and the future King of Alinera took hold of them.

“You selected your soldiers very well,” Julian said to the captain of the guard, who walked at his side a little behind the soldiers running ahead.

“Me? It wasn’t me. Princess Anasthasia searched the kingdom and beyond for steel mages like herself and built her guard. She gave the army authority to train them, but she participated in it all,” the captain said with pride.

“I’m a lucky bastard, ain’t I?” Julian asked with a smirk, and the captain chuckled, bashing his palm against Julian’s shoulder but unable to make him move an inch.

“You are, Baron. The boys and I were talking about that.”

Julian smiled at the man, holding his tongue not to criticize the way he talked to him. The lack of decorum from the soldier could’ve made other lords take extreme measures. But none of those lords had asked the captain to fight monsters from fairy tales and bloodlust orcs. He could forgive a little lack of decorum.

“Right, men,” Julian said as the two soldiers at the top of the stairs peeked inside the castle and returned a few steps. He climbed the stairs and stopped at the top. “We can all hear the sound of clashing swords and the filthy groan of those orcs. It’s our job to clean the castle. Today, we’ll make a statement. These are the elite soldiers from the enemy, and today, a handful of soldiers and nobles will dispatch them without losing anyone.”

“Ay!” the soldiers shouted, while the other companions only nodded. Julian darted his eyes towards everyone. “This is just the beginning of the war. We have the weapons to win it, but we need the numbers. So, I’ll say it again. No one dies today, do you hear me?”

“Yes!” This time, everyone yelled, even his mother and father.

“Let’s finish this and head to Marimar. Go ahead,” Julian said.

The soldiers rushed directly into the castle. Marcella, Adrian, Rayra, and Anasthasia followed close behind. The captain stopped at Julian’s side and asked.

“Are you coming with us, sir?”

“No, Captain. This command is yours. The thing in the skies is approaching, and I sense it wants me. It’ll be better if I fight it far away from here. I don’t want my people to be cooked inside my castle walls,” Julian told him bluntly, not caring about sugar-coating the situation. Just as he expected, the soldier nodded firmly, content with how Julian dealt with the problem.

“We’ll be back soon to help, son,” Marcella said from the castle door. Julian nodded, but said nothing. He didn’t want anyone’s help; this creature in the sky was his to fight. Rayra seemed to understand that and addressed him without words, while Anasthasia waved a shy goodbye with one hand. Julian smiled at the princess, savoring every moment she showed this other side of her, so distant from the firm and authoritarian one she needed to wear almost constantly.

As Julian rushed away from the castle and towards one of the city's outer walls, Julian heard his companions climbing the stairs and fighting the enemies. Orcs shouted war cries and insults, but Julian kept hearing their grave voices turning into gurgles and screams of pain. He couldn’t contain the smile on his mouth as their numbers decreased, and he heard not one of his companions asking for help or yelling that someone was down.

Anytime now, Julian thought, his eyes glaring from time to time to the giant cloud above his head. The thing covered all of Silverhold and seemed to slowly descend towards the city, making the shadows grow thick, and a strange filter covered the whole town in the penumbra.

As Julian rushed onto the streets, he saw no one there. Good, you are an intelligent folk; he thought as the cloud above his head shifted in the sky and a booming sound emerged. The shadow covering the city started to move quickly, changing its form from a beautiful cotton cloud into a muscular body that flapped gigantic wings, creating a loud song that spread toward the whole town and beyond.

When the actual cloud dissipated, revealing the creature, the most pristine beast Julian had ever seen flew in its place. The creature’s white scales shone against the sunlight, looking resplendent. They seemed to move around its body, trying to mimic the texture of a cloud but slowly turning into the scales Julian had seen on all of the dragonkin. The creature rose in the sky, its immense tail falling toward the city while its two wings were kept high.

The monster had an elongated neck, and its face was directed toward Julian. The white scales flowed up its long neck to its massive head and ended in a gigantic maw with teeth as long as swords, nostrils that emitted white smoke, and big yellow eyes. Even from a distance, Julian could see the intelligence in the monster’s eyes that glimmered with the sunlight. The sight of that glare sent a shiver down Julian’s neck. Something about it felt wrong.

Beneath the monster’s neck, a red dot, the size of one of its scales, shone with a dim light, almost invisible if one didn’t have good vision. Julian watched as the majestic creature puffed smoke into the air and prepared for his next steps. The monster was similar in size to Julian’s manor, with wings stretching for what seemed to be more than five hundred feet and a body almost the same size from head to toe. That monster matched the giant snake he had fought on the Twelve Isles, and the strange creature of the mirror realm he defeated before encountering Ranabi. However, none of those monsters exhaled the power this one did.

The growing light in the creature’s open mouth quickly disturbed Julian's contemplation. Julian saw its insides growing pink and a lump forming at the pit of its neck and traveling directly to its mouth. Thankfully, he was already far away from the castle and the houses near him were all unoccupied. He had just to keep running and leave the city’s proximities before the creature released its fire.

He commanded the air to form a mana platform for him to climb. His feet found it as if he could see them. The monster’s head followed Julian, readying itself to fire death upon him, but Julian kept running to the side and upwards, climbing the platforms as if they were a staircase. He wanted to draw the creature to the semi-arid soil that surrounded Silverhold, where nothing or anyone would be burned by it, but he wouldn’t be fast enough.

He decided to meet the dragon in the sky, as he ran and jumped, landing on one of his platforms. He started his slow ascendance on the platforms, jumping from some that formed beneath his feet to others that formed in the sky, but not even that was enough. He was already far from the castle and nearing the outer walls of Silverhold, but still, the creature could burn the town if it wanted. Julian needed to fly away if he wanted to save the city. Become the wind, he thought, thinking about Ranabi’s words just as the dragon’s fire started to leak from its mouth.

“If you can help me to fly, now’s your chance,” Julian muttered to his armor as he jumped again, not creating any platform beneath or above him. He felt his armor glowing and getting hot inside. The wind pushed him toward the sky, making him fly violently in the sun’s direction. It was completely different from the throws Makao could perform or the magic Thalia’s brother had used against him. It was like the armor sucked the wind toward itself, but Julian couldn’t control it.

The monster finally released the fire from its throat upon seeing the lord travel at super speed. A firewall erupted like a volcano into the sky, following Julian’s movement and trying to hit him. Ranabi had assured him the monster couldn’t burn him or his armor, but he wouldn’t give it any chance to test it. He was glad the wind made him too fast for the monster’s flames, but he was still flying face-first toward the sun at immense speed. Soon, all he could see when he looked down was the giant fire trying to reach him and the houses and castle, which started to become small dots in his vision.

He would probably be the first person to reach the end of the sky if he kept flying like that. He didn’t want to discover what lay there; he would leave this question to astronomers and poets. Julian commanded the wind to shove him to his right, but nothing happened. Become the wind, he repeated in his mind. Become the wind. How did I do that? Julian thought, trying to understand what had triggered the armor to fly like that.

“Stop,” he commanded, concentrating his energy on the mana in his core as if he were disabling one of the mana platforms he could create. Just like that, he started a free fall toward the drake’s flames. “Okay, now to the right!” Julian commanded, and with it, he once again concentrated on his mana core and imagined he was manipulating the mana from his platforms. Just like that, the armor heated again and threw him to the side, far away from the castle and Silverhold. The flames extinguished themselves as the drake prepared to follow Julian.

Become the wind! It was stupidly obvious now that Julian thought about that. He didn’t need to create areas on his body to be pushed or mana platforms for him to climb. He only needed to connect with the mana in the wind. Using the mental commands of the platforms gave direction to the spell he had just learned, and the armor seemed to facilitate that and even exponentially increase it. However, it became apparent quickly that flying itself wasn’t a boon given by Ranabi. She had only given me a tip! Julian’s mind assessed the information as he realized he could’ve pretty much smashed against Silverhold’s cobblestones if he hadn’t been able to use the spell.

He was sure the goddess was laughing somewhere down there. Julian smiled as well. He was freaking flying at last! He pulled the wind like a string that sent him away. He realized he could fly in any position, with his feet toward the ground or to the sky, sitting or facing the ground, as the dragonkin did. He only needed to turn on his axis and not lose the connection with the wind. He turned his back in the dragon’s direction and saw it coming fast toward him, wings flapping violently and another fire attack being prepared inside its throat.

Julian looked like a fly compared to the mighty beast, but didn’t fear it for one second. He kept going away from the creature, taking care not to fly it back to his manor and trying to impart more power into his flight. When he reached what he thought was maximum speed, the world below them turned into a blur, and he and the dragon became the only things that mattered at that moment.

The creature spat its fire again, but it wasn’t a wall of flame this time. Instead, an unstable fireball flew toward him with immense speed. Julian changed his direction to the skies, feeling the pressure of the sudden change in the wind. He dodged the attack by a few feet, only to see the monster release another fireball. Julian dashed to his left this time, and the monster released another one, flying toward the lord, not losing momentum for even a second. If it kept firing the magic toward Julian, he would be caught by the creature’s maw sooner rather than later.

With every dodge, the monster attacked again. Its fireballs became slower and smaller with each firing, allowing Julian to dodge and gain some of the advantage back. Seeing its efforts weren’t paying off, the monster snarled at the air and rapidly released one fireball after another. Julian dodged the first two, but the third hit him in the chest. The fire consumed the breastplate, and he saw some of its roots scorching. When he was about to get worried, the heat and the fire disappeared instantly. What didn’t disappear was the impact Julian suffered.

The impact of the fire was so intense that Julian lost his connection with the wind. His momentum continued to hurl him ahead, but gravity then pulled him diagonally toward the ground below. It was hard to establish a new connection when the world kept spinning around, and the monster’s attack had kidnapped the air in his lungs.

Sensing Julian’s difficulty, the creature flapped its wings in a large arc and stretched its body, preparing for a fast dive. It’s coming for me, Julian realized as he saw the creature’s posture while he spun toward the ground. He tried once more to change his direction, but failed. He could create a platform before him and stop his travel, which could be risky. He had no idea how his magic would react when he crashed against it. Arcane magic had its density, and Julian wasn’t ready to test it now. He had only another choice.

As the monster approached with its jaw opened, Julian fabricated an arcane blast and waited. It was hard to see the creature coming, but Julian calculated the time mentally and prepared. When he heard the monster’s maw snap into a closing movement and some of its fangs were visible in the corner of his eye, he released the magic, aiming at the ground. It didn’t strike the monster, but it sent Julian flying upward. He had gathered so much energy that his momentum avoided the monster’s bite altogether. He barely evaded its second chomp that it did when it realized Julian was again in a new direction.

The creature’s jaw snapped a few feet beneath Julian’s legs just as the lord finally connected with the wind and flew up to the skies.

The drake changed its direction to follow, and Julian could swear he saw the monster’s scales rapidly changing from white to red, as if they were showing its anger. That’s good, Julian thought. A furious beast does not think straight.

Julian watched as the monster’s head reddened by the second, and another ball of fire formed in its mouth. You’ll not be ready for this. Julian smirked, feeling the wind whipping against his head and his eyes watering. Flying was more laborious than one would think. He kept looking beneath, waiting for the monster to be close to release its attack, and then he would surprise it. The clue seemed obvious; the beast would create a lump at the root of its throat before releasing an attack as if something inside launched the magic away. He only had to wait for the monster to perform the movement, and he would strike.

Julian started feeling out of breath as the sky turned darker than it was supposed to be when he saw the lump forming in the monster’s throat. That was when he slid to the side and gave up on his connection with the wind. The fall was so fast and the movement so unpredictable that the monster shot its fireball toward the sun, realizing what Julian had done too late. Unsheathing his sword quickly, Julian pierced the monster’s scales as he fell past its neck. The enchanted sword entered deep into the monster’s flesh, but its size wasn’t big enough to hurt a vital organ of the creature. However, the creature's momentum, plus the sharpness of Julian’s sword, made him cut the giant drake from the neck to where its hind legs touched its body. Julian had to hold firm to the sword to avoid falling.

He wouldn’t give up on that position. The creature started screaming midway through the slash, and its thrashing almost plummeted Julian down several times. The crying of the monster mixed with its spitting of fire as Julian had to hold himself tighter with his hand on the sword, which was still deep inside the dragon. The beast thrashed and flapped its wings, trying to drop Julian and crying loudly.

“You can keep yelling. No one is coming!” Julian shouted between gritted teeth as he extended the reach of his sword as far as he could, depositing all the mana he had on it. The beast’s sound became almost unbearable, but Julian kept inserting all the mana he could into the attack until he felt the point of the blade exiting the other side of the monster’s body.

Like someone who receives a knife in the belly, all the monster's strength faltered, and it started free-falling toward the ground. Julian looked below, certifying himself that he wasn’t near any city or houses.

He had no idea where he was. Nothing was on the horizon, and he found nothing below that indicated his position. The monster fell fast, its weight driving it to the ground as if a magnet pulled it. Julian released the creature’s scales and let the wind care for him. He soared into the sky with his body covered with crimson blood as the creature crashed into the ground.

He slowly descended, taking care to watch the monster. Maybe it was more intelligent than he thought, and it was faking the severity of its wounds to get Julian off guard. However, the creature thrashed on the ground from one side to the other, rolling and smashing its head against the rocky ground. Julian kept soaring over it, looking attentively at its movements.

Julian did not know drake’s anatomy, but if he had to guess, he didn’t believe he had hit a vital spot on the creature. It kept thrashing in immense pain, though. Seeing such an outstanding foe in pain sent shivers down Julian’s spine, and he slowly approached it, ready to end its suffering.

The creature stopped the smashing of its head against the ground, blood pouring from a wound above its right eye. The beast was now almost unconscious, but it kept a low grunt. It was in agony. It stretched its neck as Julian got close, and Julian saw the red light shining more brightly amidst its pristine scales.

The thing Julian had considered to be a scale was, in reality, a necklace. The chain around its neck had been camouflaged in the white of the creature’s neck, but the pendant was blazing. The red thing pulsated, and the monster groaned with every flash. The brighter the light, the louder the monster’s complaint.

Julian flew close to it, all traces of fear exiting his body as he approached the monster’s head. It slowly moved its jaw toward him, threatening to open it and attack but stopping midway without a breath attack left in its body. On the other hand, its strangely intelligent eyes looked at Julian with tears inside them. The dragon blinked, and a tear fell on the rocky ground below. Julian tightly raised his sword in a downward strike just as the monster closed its eyes again.

The blade cut the chain in a single and fast movement. The pendant fell to the ground and stopped its pulsating light. The monster opened its eyes and fell back, seemingly in control of its body again as it stopped thrashing and its breath replaced the grunts and cries of pain. Its eyes fixated on Julian, studying him. Yet, the lord didn’t move. The monster rolled around, its body pouring blood as it stood on all fours. It opened its wings and tried to fly away, but as soon as its tail rose from the ground, it collapsed to the ground again.

It cried and grunted, a moan of pain erupting from the depths of its throat. The creature then fell unconscious on the ground, exhaustion finally taking hold of it.

He raised one hand and traveled it toward the creature's face, slowly caressing it. The drake’s close eye moved beneath its eyelids and a soft whimper exited its mouth. A bright haze formed in the middle of the giant creature’s back as it started to change. A faint white smoke transformed its body.

When the creature opened its eyes again, it wasn’t a drake anymore. On the ground, before Julian’s feet, lay a woman covered in blood from the neck to the end of her back. She was lying with her side to the ground, her face was ashen from the loss of blood, and her eyes were a deep yellow. Her hair and eyebrows were as silvery as the moonlight, and her ears were pointed like an elf's.

She looked into Julian’s eyes one more time before closing them and said in a raspy voice,

“Thank you.”

Chapter Seven

“Tell me again what happened,” Julian asked, sitting in the chair inside his living room as he caressed the cushion with eager hands. He had never been attached to objects, much less luxurious ones. However, he needed to know if it was all real.

“That beautiful lady from before appeared at our doorstep just as we removed what had been salvaged from the manor and asked us to put everything back inside.”

“And you obliged?”

“I’m sorry, master. She was very convincing. After we put everything in its place, she waved one hand, and everything seemed to return in time. The wood became clean and unburnt, the books restored, the walls raised themselves, and even the rocks from the outer walls returned to their place.”

“She’s full of surprises,“ Julian muttered as he looked down at his collarbone. In the middle of his shirt stood a lovely medallion made out of wood and tied on a simple rope. The pendant had a lion on it. When Julian commanded his armor to retreat, it had turned itself into that object he held firmly in his hand.

“Maybe it’s time for you to fully trust her,” Rayra said with a gentle touch as she sat at his side.

“You’re right. I just didn’t want to lose a friend. Sorry if I overreacted.” Julian said, and Tarav raised a confused eyebrow. Julian wasn’t ready to tell him he had nearly died that day. He would do it later and saw no reason for another person to harbor bad feelings toward a goddess. Let him have his fine impressions of her. To be fair, she had healed Tarav. It was just hard getting over the knowledge that she would have let him die if Julian hadn’t fought for his life.

Before Tarav could ask any other questions, Marcella entered the room and dropped onto one of the cushions. Adrian followed with a shocked gaze, the older man probably questioning his sanity upon seeing his home reconstructed after having seen it destroyed not long ago.

“Why are you all so shocked?” Marcella asked. For a moment, Julian was confused until he remembered his mother had no idea what had happened at the manor. She had left before the drake had attacked the house.

The thought of the drake shook Julian on the spot. The strange woman was sleeping in one of the carriages just outside their gates after receiving treatment from Rayra, but she showed no signs of waking up. She had transformed just like Rayra did when she turned into a fox, but into a much larger creature, and Julian almost killed her.

Was she under the spell of Fenrir, or was he hosting an actual enemy? he thought. His face gazed toward the ajar door that showed him the carriage surrounded by five soldiers. His musings were cut short as Anasthasia entered the room. The princess wore a genuine smile as she sat near Marcella. Thalia and Liz followed just behind, having just arrived from the capital with no news of attacks.

Julian let his eyes dart from everyone there and realized this was the first time he had his whole family in the same place. His wives, parents, and Tarav. His eyes stopped at the old butler, and a flash of his face losing color assaulted his mind for a second. There was a man he wasn’t ready to lose, just like any other person in that room, even Ana, who had entered the family more recently.

Watching the princess put a smile on Julian’s face and helped shove away the tragic thoughts that tried to sneak inside his brain. It was probably the first time in years that the princess felt out of place, and somehow, she seemed perfectly fine with it. Her embarrassed and shy expression showed more eagerness to be accepted than any shyness from being an outsider. How heavy is the weight you’ve been carrying alone? Julian wondered in his mind, moving to sit near her. He extended one hand, which she eagerly accepted, smiling earnestly. Julian caught more than a pair of eyes watching the gesture, but not even one had judgment in them, not even Rayra.

If everything turns out for the better, I’ll probably have the happiest family in the world, he involuntarily thought as he felt her grip tightening on his hand, as the room’s silence started bothering her. Julian cleared his throat and said,

“Mom, this is Thalia. She’s an arcane mage like me and a new family member,” Julian said, pointing toward Thalia, who smiled broadly and waved one hand. Marcella seemed confused for a while with her eyebrows raised. Julian imagined she was going to make another joke, but she relaxed her shoulders and smiled.

“Welcome to the family, daughter. We’ll have time to get to know each other better, but I trust that my son only chooses well.”

“He does,” Thalia replied promptly, adjusting on the chair and sustaining Marcella’s gaze until Marcella turned and looked around.

“It’s so nice to have the house full. If it weren’t for the tragedy in Silverhold or the one in our worker’s quarters, today would be the perfect day for a feast.” Marcella received several smiles from the others in the room. Tarav halted in the corner of the room and chimed in.

“I didn’t prepare a feast, but there’s good food already in the pans and the oven. Soon, everyone will have their bellies full.”

“Is there enough for all the soldiers?” Julian asked.

“Of course, master. They’ll be served pretty soon.”

“Great. We’ll leave after everyone’s eaten and rested for a while.”

“Are you sure, son? It’s almost night, and you most certainly are exhausted,” Marcella said, moving to the edge of the cushion, clearly nervous about her son departing so soon after his arrival.

“There’s no other way. We’re not sure if the portal Ranabi found will be able to lead us to Marimar and the beastfolk. The sooner we get there, the better.”

“And where is it, son?” Adrian Lionheart asked.

“To the west coast. A twelve-day trip from here, close to a small city called Raven’s Port. There are sightings of beastfolk and tamed beasts appearing in the region without crossing any roads, and Ranabi is sure there was a portal there. We’re almost certain this is our place.”

“And you’ll be able to reach the place and return in time for the wedding?” Marcella asked with worry in her voice.

“Thalia can travel us from far distances; she just needs to have seen the place once.”

“Except when Ranabi inserted a picture of this manor in my mind. Yet even then, I fell from several feet high in the middle of the crops.”

Julian chuckled at the memory.

“It would have been nice if she could have done the same for us to reach Marimar,” Julian lamented, but he could do nothing about it. That was the first thing he had proposed to Ranabi. Unfortunately, when Thalia tried to perform the travel based on the goddess’s description, the other end of the portal led to a beach in the middle of nowhere, as if the magical city of Marimar had some protection against invaders using jump magic. “That’s why we need to get moving. Time is of the essence,” Julian said, getting up and moving toward his bedroom. They needed to rush, but he wanted to sleep briefly before that.

“If you excuse me, I’ll rest until the dinner is ready. We’ll leave two hours after we eat,” Julian said, already with his hands on the handrail. Everyone nodded and even caught a glimpse of Rayra sitting at the side of Anasthasia before he went the rest of the way up, smiling broadly.

Their goodbye was as warm as their embrace of reunion.

“I’ll be back soon.”

“Are you sure you don’t need our help?” Adrian asked, and Julian let one hand squeeze his father’s shoulder.

“You’ll help me if you stay home and sort everything out. Become the great lord you always have been. When all this is finished, I’ll need a new Baron for Silverhold,” Julian said, patting his shoulder.

Adrian raised both eyebrows in surprise and had to clear his throat before speaking again.

“Are you sure, son? Even after all my failures?”

“If you had asked me this question three months ago, I’d probably have said I’m not sure. Now that I know what really happened, yes. I’m sure, Dad. You’re the most capable person to run this place. Mom will keep you in check. Right, Mom?” Julian asked, and Marcella hugged her husband’s waist tightly with one hand, eliciting a grunt from the thin man—who was already gaining a few pounds.

“He’ll be on the line, I promise,” she said and smiled broadly to her husband, who replied with a gentle kiss.

“Right, it’s our time to go,” Julian said, moving downstairs to where Tarav had waited. The other members of Julian’s travel party were already outside the gates, waiting for him.

“Old friend,” Julian said, putting both hands on Tarav’s shoulders as they locked gazes. Tarav’s eyes watered, and he threatened to avoid Julian’s gaze for a second, but then stared at him again.

“I remember now what happened, master.”

“I’m sorry, Tarav. I should’ve used a better spell to stop the wall,” Julian said apologetically, but that only brought a firm expression to Tarav’s face.

“No, sir. I want you to know that if I had died here today, I would have died happy knowing that I served the best man I have ever known.”

“Tarav—”

“I’m being serious, master. Don’t even think about feeling guilty for anything. Do you remember when we were at the top of these stairs after defeating the burrowmaw?” When Julian nodded, he continued. “That same day, I told you could use your mother’s heirlooms because you had the heart in the right place. You still have it, and unless that changes, know you’re doing the best you can. This world would be doomed without you.”

“Thank you, Tarav. I’ll return alive and make you proud.”

“I couldn’t be more proud. I’d never try to steal your father’s position, but⁠—”

“I know,” Julian said, holding back the tears that threatened to leave his eyes. Tarav pulled the lord into a tight embrace that lasted no more than two seconds, then they parted the embrace, looking into each other's eyes—no words needed to be uttered.

“Go save the world and come back. I’ll want to see your babies running all over the house,” Tarav finally said, and Julian nodded, walking toward the manor's gates where all his wives waited.

Chapter Eight

The first three days of travel were almost uneventful. Silverhold sat in an almost desert area of Alinera. All they had to see were plains, lone trees at the side of the road, and the piercing sun rising on one side of the horizon just to set on the other.

If anything, the time they spent in the desert had been great for them to get to know each other better. Mornings and afternoons were filled with conversations about life in the capital or some of Rayra’s adventures before she found Julian and Liz.

All day they traveled inside the carriages, stopped to help cook the food, tended the horses, and got back to traveling, only to stop when it was already night to set up camp. The fact that the desert was well-lit helped them keep traveling for several minutes after the sun had set, and the warmth of the arid place was replaced by the cold nights.

Julian had tried to help the soldiers set up camp every night and pack up in the morning, but they refused his help. They wanted to be useful and considered that it was their job to serve his family. Julian didn’t want to argue with them, and eventually gratefully accepted their proposal. Hence, while they worked on setting up the camp, Julian decided to exercise.

On the second night, the Royal Guard told a particular story around the fire that spooked Liz and Anasthasia. Liz didn’t hide her fear and hugged Julian’s side tightly when the captain told them about how vampires attacked late at night, killing their enemies before they could wake up. Liz had grown to be a tough adventurer, but something in that story spooked her, and Julian was glad to calm her down.

What he wasn’t expecting was Ana’s hand grasping his with force at the same time Liz hugged him. They traded glances, and she seemed reassured when he let his hand travel towards her thighs, caressing them slowly as the captain finalized the story.

Rayra, who stood on the other side of the fire, surprisingly smiled at her, and for the first time, Julian saw them sharing a moment. His heart accelerated in his chest, and he pulled Anasthasia close. She rested her face on his shoulder, and they remained that way for several moments, neither wanting to part ways.

When Rayra went to sleep that night, she kissed him with passion and hugged Anasthasia before saying goodnight to her. Slowly, things were getting better, but they still had a long way to go.

On the fourth day, they kept traveling in four carriages: two for Julian's companions, one for the soldiers to take turns out of the sun, and a final one for the dragon woman who still slept deeply. Rayra tended to her wounds every day. They took turns watching her, yet there was no sign of waking or danger coming from her. However, Julian could feel the uneasiness in everyone's eyes as they neared the carriage where she was.

Julian had told them what had happened, and he saw more than one soldier frown upon his decision. They had all watched some of the fights in the skies and the destruction she had wrought on the workers' quarters. Still, her words, after transforming back into a woman, were carved inside his mind. “Thank you,” she had said, and Julian felt earnest gratitude in her voice at that moment.

He couldn't just let her die in the middle of nowhere or leave her under the care of his family back at the manor. He doubted she was a danger to them, but if she was, he and his wives were the only ones he believed capable of defeating her. He had done it once; he could do it twice.

With those thoughts in mind, he watched her lying on the opposite seat of the carriage. It was the sunset of the fourth day, and he watched as the orange light pierced the window and illuminated her ashen face. She seemed almost translucent beneath the light, her white hair turning silver as the light wavered with the carriage's movement.

She was simply perfect. Like a goddess in an epic tale, she lay there, as still as a statue. The only sign of life was her slow breathing, barely moving her chest up and down. The simple clothes she now wore didn't make her look any less godly. She had a similar aura to Ranabi, but hers was fiery, like that of his mother. He felt something similar from both women, an aura of constrained power. Julian wasn’t afraid of the woman sleeping before him, but he felt deeply in his heart she could set the whole world on fire if she wanted. He would much prefer having this kind of strength at his side and not fighting against him. By now, Fenrir would probably consider her as good as dead. How surprised would he be if she appeared to fight against him soon?

The thought put a smile on Julian’s face. Can’t you wake up already? Julian mentally asked as he heard a knock on the door.

“Enter,” Julian said casually.

“My turn,” Thalia said, sitting at his side. “Everything all right?”

“Yes. Are we still on time?”

“Everything is going according to plan. We’re even a little ahead of our predictions.”

“Right, let’s not put too much weight on the horses. We’ll rest now.”

“The men will love it. I surely liked it when I was part of the guard.”

“Great, I’ll take the news to the captain. I’ll be on my way,” Julian said, rising from the seat and moving to the small door beside Thalia.

The girl held his arm firmly and demanded his attention with an inquiring gaze. “No kiss?” she asked, and Julian leaned down to kiss her lips. Her mouth was as soft as ever, and her breath smelled heavenly. When their tongues touched briefly, he had to force himself to break off her fantastic kiss. She looked utterly disappointed when he smiled and opened the door.

“Can you imagine her waking up to that scene?” he asked with his brow raised. “Later, I promise,” he said, putting one foot outside and smiling at Thalia, who pouted on the seat.

“I’ll remember this promise.”

“No problem,” Julian said, already outside the carriage but certain she had listened. He rushed toward the captain at the front of the line and relayed the news, which he responded to with a broad smile and a quick announcement to the men, who started to stop their walking and set up camp.

Julian stretched his arms to the skies and turned to the side, feeling the cold wind of the evening reach his arms. They were almost reaching the end of the semi-arid part of Alinera, but the days were still hot, and the nights were chilly. Exercising was one of Julian’s favorite parts of the day. He used it to put his thoughts in order and make his blood pump.

With those thoughts in mind, he started the run he did every day as they set up camp. This was a perfect way for him to organize his thoughts and scout ahead for danger. Other soldiers tried to follow him on the first and second day, but soon realized they couldn’t keep up with him. The only one who could was Rayra, but the fox girl was more preoccupied with preparing what she would say to the folks of Marimar when she arrived.

He started to run faster until he began to feel his lungs getting sore, his breath labored, and his muscles aching. When he looked behind himself, he couldn’t see the company anymore, yet he knew how to find them using the stars starting to appear or the sun still visible at the edge of the horizon.

He slowly caught his breath and decided it was time to reach for the grimoire. When he clasped his fingers, the thick book opened in his hands and jumped from a page in the middle even before Julian thought about opening the pages.

‘I missed you.’

The book started to write by itself, putting a smile on Julian’s face. As far as inanimate objects went, this book was his favorite.

‘I’m feeling something different. I’m closer to you than ever. Can you hear me?’

Julian listened attentively, closed his eyes, and waited. He could hear the wind crashing against his face and tousling his hair, a coyote howling in the distance, and just as he was about to say he couldn’t hear her, he heard a whisper in his ear.

‘You’re growing so fast.’ Her voice echoed in his mind, and he almost jumped as he heard it.

“I can hear you!” he exclaimed, surprised, looking to his sides, searching for her. But just as he imagined, she was nowhere to be seen.

‘I’m … changing. It’s hard for me to speak or to explain. Just keep getting stronger. And use your damn Soul Shards!’

The last part had the annoyance so characteristic of the first times they had interacted in the past. The truth was Julian had so many Soul Shards inside Rayra’s satchel from the fight at the beach that he would probably be able to advance his whole level from adept to intermediate mage. With that, he would be closer to learning more powerful spells, and now, apparently, he could also influence the spirit of the book somehow. What would happen if he continued advancing to become an Arcane Lord as mighty as the First King?

“I’ll consume them soon, I promise,” Julian said as the words on the book disappeared and were replaced by the customary words of his information.

Owner: Julian Lionheart.

Rank: Adept (0/20 shards).

Magic Affinity: Arcane.

Beneath the basic information, there were the spells he already knew thoroughly: the blast, the whip, the enchantment, the conjured weapon, and Ranabi’s Blessing, which hadn’t been used yet but she promised would be necessary to fight against Fenrir in the future.

Right below all those spells, he read the lines:

Arcane Platform: Julian can create platforms, transforming the mana in the air into secure places to grab, stand, or swing. The first Arcane Mages used this as an archaic mode of flight. It took some generations for the understanding of Arcane Flight to progress to true flight.

No shit, Julian thought, reading the lines and smiling. Thanks to the Last, he hadn’t taken so long to discover how to fly correctly. That spell was next on the list.

Arcane Flight: Julian can command the wind to adhere to him, pulling it from several directions and making stable flight possible. This spell costs no mana and only needs a connection between Julian and the mana in the air. With each power-up of the mage Rank, the speed of the flight will become faster.

Julian tested his flight daily, and the description aligned with his discovery. Flying was easy and demanded close to no effort. However, flying fast was difficult. The dragon lady had almost killed him several times while he tried to fly from her, and she was an immense dragon. He would have a hard time flying away from a more agile being. Consuming the Soul Shards became an even greater priority.

Passing his eyes to the end of the page, he noticed a different thing waiting for him. It wasn’t an endowment like the one he received in the mirror realm or the messages the grimoire wrote for him.

Magical Gifts:

Ranabi’s Armor: Forged with a piece of Ranabi’s soul, this armor is nearly indestructible and possesses some of the goddess's powers. It repels magic, heals the user over time, and can blind weaker foes or fog the senses of stronger ones. It'll respond to commands and regenerate mana for the user, using the goddess's mana as fuel.

The armor was even more potent than Julian had thought, and what surprised him even more was the fact that the thing had been made with a piece of Ranabi’s soul. It wasn’t surprising anymore that she seemed a bit older when she gave it to Julian.

He looked at his surroundings and smiled. He couldn’t see the goddess anywhere, but he knew she was there with them, watching their trip and waiting for their arrival at Marimar to show herself. Julian only hoped she wasn’t sacrificing herself for his cause. He would accept any help he could get to defeat Fenrir, but would prefer not to have her death on his shoulders. Nevertheless, his promise of finding a way to not rely on the gods' pettiness remained the same. When Fenrir was finished, he would search for a way to ensure the world could be safe without the interference of mighty beings.

Julian flipped a few more pages, searching for more information, but only found what seemed to be written words with almost unreadable paint. Julian narrowed his eyes and tried to read it, but couldn’t. He could only assume it was a spell he was close to learning, but not quite enough to be written down in the book.

He closed the book, excited to learn more, and prepared to fly back to the camp. The spell made him faster than when he was running and had the advantage of not tiring his muscles. He breathed deeply and concentrated on the spell, letting his mana drive the wind and push him to the skies. He looked at the horizon in the direction they had to go next and was surprised by what he saw.

A giant wall of sand started forming a sandstorm at a distance, and it was moving fast toward him and the camp.

Chapter Nine

Julian pressed his energy against the wind and felt a slight increase in speed, but it was almost imperceptible. He was still slower than the approaching storm. Dropping to the ground, he began running with the wind at his back. The storm was still far away, but he accelerated, afraid of the storm picking up speed and reaching them too quickly. On the edge of the next slope, he knew that he would see the camp ahead once he climbed it.

He commanded the wind again, flying up the slope and saving a few minutes he would have wasted in an ascending run. When he reached the top, the storm was much closer than before. “Sand storm!” he yelled, waving both hands as he hit the ground running. “Sand storm!” he repeated, but no one seemed to hear him. He could see a fire flickering weakly and the silhouettes of soldiers enjoying supper, too absorbed to notice him.

When he was finally heard, he wasn't far away. “Sand storm coming! Eye protection for the horses! Set up the tents with extra cover!” he ordered.

“What's going on, sir?” the captain asked as he ran to meet Julian halfway, his voice loud enough for the whole camp to hear. Julian didn't reply; he just pointed behind him and saw the older man gasp and widen his eyes. The sandstorm mixed with the dark horizon, but its wall had become completely visible now at the distance, “Eye protection for the horses! Set up tents with extra cover!” the captain shouted, echoing Julian's commands as he watched the men drop their pots and hastily prepare for the storm.

Growing up in Silverhold, Julian was accustomed to sand storms. He had witnessed one not long ago when Liz visited him for the first time after his arrival. Yet, this was the biggest he had ever seen. It seemed the desert was bidding them farewell in the least pleasant way possible.

He moved to help the soldiers carry out his orders while all of his wives did the same. Soon, the horses were protected, the tents were up, the fire extinguished, and all the food, water, and utensils were stored inside the carriage where the dragon lady slept.

“Good luck, captain. When the storm is over, knock on my door,” Julian said over the loud sound of the approaching storm. Dust flew into his eyes involuntarily, and he had to shield his face with his arm to make it to his carriage. He couldn't help thinking about the irony that he could fly and manipulate mana at will, and yet nature was a more potent foe than any other. All he could do in the face of a sandstorm was wait.

He violently opened the carriage door—not out of a desire to be harsh, but because the wind nearly swept him away as he balanced on the steps. Ana gasped at the noise, placing a hand over her heart, then sighing in relief when she realized it was Julian. He quickly entered the carriage and shut the door with a loud THUMP. He could still hear the storm outside, but now it was bearable. The windows were closed entirely, though occasionally, he could hear them rattle with the wind's force.

Julian sprawled out in the carriage and sighed deeply. The interior was spacious, comfortably accommodating Julian, Thalia, and Ana on one seat with plenty of space on either side. In the middle, there was a spot for one person to sleep, and Rayra and Liz sat with even more space on the other seat. If they needed to sleep there all together, it wouldn't be a problem.

“Are you alright?” Julian asked Anasthasia, who seemed to grip her knees firmly, shaking her hands. “I'm afraid of storms,” she admitted, looking down. Two lamps dimly lit the carriage's interior on each side, but Ana's fear was almost palpable. Rayra moved towards Anasthasia by sitting on the edge of their seat, placing her hands over Ana’s.

“Breathe, princess. Three deep breaths, hold and repeat,” she instructed, demonstrating the movement in front of her. Julian mirrored the action close to Ana's face, and slowly, she began to calm down.

“It's just the wind and sand. They aren't mad at us; nature is taking its course. Breathe,” Julian whispered near her ear, noticing the hairs on her neck stand on end. She shifted slightly, wanting him to continue speaking close to her. “I'm here with you. Thalia, Rayra, and Liz too. You're fine,” he reassured her, watching her anxiety ease.

“Are you feeling better?” he asked, placing one hand on her waist and feeling the curve of her hip. She slightly trembled at his touch, but feigned indifference. She blinked and focused her eyes slowly on his, gazing deeply into his eyes. Her gaze was a pool of unsaid intentions.

“Yes, thank you,” she said with a smile, then turned to Rayra. “Thanks as well.”

“No problem,” Rayra replied, smiling and moving back in her seat, where she resumed holding hands with Liz.

Thalia searched for Ana's hand, and the princess smiled sheepishly when they touched. “I wish things were different,” she began, then looked around at everyone inside the carriage. “I barged into your lives without asking, and I'm even joining your family. Yet, all I’ve found is love and openness flowing freely to me and accepting me.” She looked down before meeting Thalia's gaze directly. “Even from you, someone I hurt so much.”

“No more than I did to myself,” Thalia responded, tightening her grip on Ana's hand. They continued to stare at each other with half-smiles and tearful eyes.

“We are a family, aren't we? That's what we do,” Liz said with a sincere smile, trying to ease the tension.

“Political marriage or not, we're here for you,” Rayra declared, crossing her arms and attempting a smile. Ana was astute enough to detect the annoyance hiding beneath her polite facade.

“I'm sorry, Rayra. I'm not accustomed to saying things like 'sorry,' 'excuse me,' or anything like that, but I really am. Yes, it was a political marriage, and indeed it is. But now that I've spent this time with you, we've saved the people of Silverhold together, eaten together, and spent time as a family….” She sighed deeply. “You have no idea how much I missed this.”

Julian empathized with her. He knew what it was like to have parents no longer. He was lucky enough to recover his, but she had lost hers forever, and that pain would likely never fade.

“And most of all, I can see now that all this is real. I don’t want this union to be just a political marriage. I want to be a true part of this family. I want you to know that I’m ready.”

“We’ve already agreed that we want you to be part of our family. What are you ready for?” Julian answered, gazing into her eyes and smiling. She returned the gesture, and it seemed she was looking into his soul.

“I want to prove to you how badly I want to join your family in truth,” she insisted, grasping the hand he rested on her waist and pressing it firmly, making her shudder with the contact. “I've never done this, but I want my first time to be here with you all. I want you all to know that I'm serious. I think I’m in love with you, Julian Lionheart, and I want to join your harem right here and now.”

The words caught Julian off guard; he almost gasped. From the corner of his eye, he saw desire stamped on Liz's and Rayra's faces. Thalia was obscured from Ana's view, but if she were anything like she had been in the morning, she would be on board. Seeing a member of the harem satisfied was as pleasurable as being satisfied himself; he had learned quickly from Liz and Rayra, and it was no different from Thalia.

His heart raced, and his arousal began to strain against his pants. Noticing this, Ana moved her trembling hand to his crotch and grasped it with unsure hands.

“What do you say?” she asked, massaging his cock.

“Show me how much you want to be a part of this family,“ Julian said, his eyes darting from her perfect eyes to her mouth, desiring her to swallow his cock.

“Can you help me, sister?” Ana asked, looking at Thalia.

The blue-haired girl was more than eager to help. Her hand moved on top of Ana’s, guiding it along his cock, moving it up and down on top of his pants. If they kept doing that, he would either tear his pants apart or cum in them.

“You’ll do just fine, but I’m happy to help,” Thalia whispered in Ana’s ear, and Julian saw her shiver again. She was so inexperienced that any touch made her shake on the spot. Julian couldn’t wait to feel his cock inside her.

Thalia moved her hands to Julian’s belt and unbuckled it, opening his trousers in a sudden movement and revealing his cock, which pointed firmly at the ceiling of the carriage. The surprise on Ana’s face upon seeing it was delightful. She licked her lips, showing an eagerness Julian didn’t know she had.

“May I?” she asked, gently holding it by the root. Her eyes were up and facing his, and her blonde hair and striking eyes carved themselves into his mind.

“Sure, sure,” Julian replied, cursing himself internally. Sure, sure? To a princess who wants to suck you? Anasthasia didn’t seem to mind his words and eagerly took it into her mouth.

“Don’t use your teeth,” Thalia said, moving her hands to grip Ana’s hair, avoiding it falling on her eyes or mouth. Only her fringe wasn’t pushed to the back of her head, making her look even more gorgeous. She worked hard on his cock, letting her tongue travel all around it but giving special attention to its head, which started to throb in response. She let the point of her tongue pass by the edge of his member’s head, traveling all the way and making him grip the seat of the carriage. On the other side, Rayra and Liz watched everything keenly, knowing it was Thalia’s and Ana’s moment to bond with him.

“He likes when we go all the way,” Thalia whispered in Ana’s ear, and Julian watched her open her mouth wide to swallow all of his dick. He could see saliva covering it, and a sudden shiver ran down his back as she descended. He could feel her throat engulfing his cock, and the feeling was simply heavenly. Thalia ensured she reached the tip of it, gently pushing her head until she couldn’t take it anymore.

Ana raised her head, and Julian thought she would stop to take some air. Instead, she dove back onto his dick, eagerly devouring it again, and when it started to enter her throat, she sucked it. It was like his soul was being removed through his dick because the pleasure was almost too much to handle. He grimaced and moved his hand to her hair, raising her and pulling her mouth from his cock.

“Did I do something wrong?” she asked. Her face reddened with her eyes watery and filled with desire.

“I want to fuck you. Hand me your panties. Let’s see how excited you are,” Julian said in a husky, need-filled voice, looking into her eyes. She smiled broadly and raised herself, quickly slipping her panties off.

She wore a simple skirt and a blouse, but Julian was so eager to enter her that he didn’t wait for her to remove them. He lowered his pants to his ankles and pulled her over his lap. When his hands took her underpants, they were soaked. Julian could smell the sweet aroma of her pussy filling the air as he gripped her ass and lifted her up. She moved to straddle him as he adjusted her skirt out of the way. As he lowered her, he thrust his cock up inside her.

She gasped, holding him by the neck as he did all the work, thrusting up and down inside her and feeling the heavenly sensation of her pussy closing against him. He moved his hands to her waist, gritting his teeth and thrusting over and over. She moaned and gasped, trying to breathe while he kept giving her all the pleasure he could.

When his breath started to become labored, and his movements slowed, she picked up the rhythm for herself, shaking her ass up and down on his cock in a clumsy way, almost letting it slip out of her. Julian couldn’t let it happen; he wanted to be inside her as much as possible. As if reading his mind, Thalia put two hands on Ana’s waist and helped her do the correct movement. The change was immediate, and Julian leaned back on the seat, letting her do the magical work.

“I’m doing it right, sisters?” Ana asked between groans, looking at Rayra and Liz, whose hands were already massaging their pussies inside their pants.

“You’re doing great. We’re proud of you,” Liz replied, her voice full of desire.

“Let me do it myself, Thalia. I think I get it,” Ana said as she rested with all of Julian inside her. Julian took that moment to breathe and looked into Ana’s eyes.

“You’re so fucking hot.” He ran his hands up her sides, caressing her neck, before he moved her face to touch his forehead.

She didn’t reply. Instead, she locked gazes with him and started to bounce on his cock almost violently, her ass clapping against his thighs in a fast and rhythmic motion.

“Cum inside me,” she whispered, still looking into his eyes. Feeling her sweet breath on his face, sweet and hot as her pussy, he realized he couldn’t deny that kind of request. She jerked in a climax before he groaned and moaned as his seed exploded inside her, filling her with his cum. She beamed in joy and kept bouncing up and down, slowly but surely. As the seconds passed, he gained back control over his body and kissed her lips passionately. Realizing only now, this was their first kiss, which couldn’t have been better.

When she slowly lifted off of him and moved away from his lap, her legs were wet with seed dripping from inside her, but she didn’t look bothered by it in the slightest. She only smiled and sat beside him, with Thalia slowly cleaning her sweaty forehead and smiling broadly.

Julian raised his pants and looked around.

“That was fun,” he said between breaths as he searched for Ana’s mouth again and kissed it gently. She let out a sigh and closed her eyes.

“Indeed. Way better than I thought it would be.”

“I said the same,” Thalia said, holding Ana's hands.

“It’s good to have you by my side again.”

“It is,” she replied in a mutter, the two girls sharing a gaze that told a story of a lost friendship being remade by a different kind of bond. Julian was glad he was a part of it, even more so that he could help, love, and fuck them. Not even in his deepest dreams as a teenager would he have assumed these four remarkable women would be at his side. He smiled and waved his hands for Rayra and Liz to come closer. They sat on his left while Ana and Thalia were on his right and embraced him, his arms touching their shoulders.

“I’m the luckiest man alive,” Julian muttered as Rayra came closer and kissed his lips.

“I’m glad you know that,” she said with a sly smile as the other girls took turns kissing him. The storm outside became only a memory amidst the joy they shared at that moment.

“I’ll make sure you all know how grateful I am,” he said, grabbing Rayra’s chin again and kissing her again more passionately. He could feel his cock already moving again in his trousers, but not yet firm enough for another round.

“Will you?” she asked in a whisper, her thick accent making him shiver with pleasure.

He didn’t reply. Instead, he got up, pushed her back to lie down on the seat, lowered her pants, opened her legs, and kneeled in front of her. Rayra gasped with the sudden motion. She smelled great down there, and with his mouth watering, he prepared to give her as much pleasure as he could. The night was only beginning, and he still had three women to please.

Chapter Ten

The sun barged into the interior through cracks in the small windows, waking Julian up. He lazily groaned as he stretched his limbs. The light entering the carriage was dim, but enough for him to inspect his surroundings. The girls had slept in a myriad of positions.

In one seat, Rayra slept with Thalia. In the other, Ana was by herself, probably too accustomed to sleeping alone and searching for a place to rest. On the ground in the middle of the carriage, Liz embraced his body firmly as she slept with her mouth ajar and her eyes closed. They looked amazing.

“Time to wake up, loves. We have a lot of ground to cover,” he said with a raspy voice as he prepared to sit up, removing Liz’s arms from him as gently as possible. She grimaced as the sunlight hit her closed eyes and refused to open them.

“How do you expect us to travel after last night?” she asked in a moody voice, the other girls moaning in the same fashion in their positions.

“You can rest inside the carriage for a few more hours. I’ll wake up the men and help with the breakfast before we set off,” he said, searching for his clothes and putting them on as fast as possible without caring to button the right spots. When he opened the door, the sun hurt his eyes, and he had to adjust his vision for a while.

When he could finally see again, the figure standing before his eyes almost made him drop to the ground.

Ranabi stood there, halted with her typical smile, eyes closed, and a cane fixed on the ground. It looked like she had been standing there for some time.

“Don’t scare me like that!” Julian said, moving past the goddess while chuckling at the strange appearance.

“Sorry, but I thought I should be here due to last night's tragic events. I only saw it when the storm was gone. I’m sorry.”

“Tragic events?” Julian asked, halting and turning to look at the goddess.

“See for yourself,” she said, waving for Julian to look at his surroundings. There were some shadows on the camp, but most of it was in plain sight. Close to the carriages, the horses that had been so well-treated lay dead on the ground with their throats slit. Their eyes were still covered by the protection he had ordered the men to put on them.

Their bodies left no clues about what had happened other than someone efficiently and quietly killing them. Julian looked again in the sun’s direction, realizing it was too high. They were used to waking early, and when they didn’t, the captain had been the first person to knock on their doors and politely inform them breakfast was ready. No, Julian thought, already knowing he wouldn’t like what he was about to confirm.

Moving towards the tents still set up, he removed the cloth covering the entrance of the first tent. The flapping sound rang in his ears as the acrid smell of death inundated his nostrils. Crumpled up inside the small tent, the bodies of the soldiers lay sprawled in all directions. Some of the men had their uniforms on, and others were in full armor. None of them seemed to have fought for their lives. Their throats had been cut just like the horses. And like the horses, they didn’t stand a chance against the foe.

Closing his nostrils with one hand and counting with the other, Julian quickly realized one of the men was missing … the captain of the guard. Where are you? Julian asked himself, already moving to different parts of the camp. He opened the other carriages, but the one for the soldiers was empty, and the one where the dragon lady slept was intact, her sleep undeterred by the dreadful events of the night.

Is this your doing? Julian contemplated her ashen face, trying to get anything out of her, but he could see nothing. Chances were that she had slept the whole night. If she were going to kill them, she would set them on fire, not slit their throats like a coward.

“It was him,” Julian said through gritted teeth. The realization hit him like a boulder. Calling the captain a friend would have been an exaggeration, and although Julian didn’t even know the man’s name, he had grown to respect him. If he wasn’t there, he had either been kidnapped, or he was the perpetrator of those crimes. The latter looked more likely, and it made Julian’s blood boil.

“It looks like it,” Ranabi said. “I noticed his absence as well. I’m sorry, Julian. I didn’t see it happen; even gods aren’t omniscient.”

“You’re fine. It’s not your fault,” Julian replied, moving away from the carriages and trying to think. He walked towards his carriage and knocked on the door. “Girls, I need to warn you…. Everyone in the camp has been slaughtered,” he said in a grave tone, hearing them move to grab their clothes as he waited.

His women exited the carriage and stared at all the bodies surrounding the camp. Rayra was the only one who moved to examine the bodies attentively before she moved to the carriage where the food and drinks were stored. Thalia and Anasthasia were the most affected by the sights. Some of the men had been acquaintances of theirs for years, and the sight of them dead like cattle shocked them to their cores.

“I wouldn’t eat or drink any of this food. It could very well be poisoned,” Rayra said, pointing at the carriage. Julian had thought about that possibility, but decided to say nothing for now. He had wanted to assess their mental health situation in light of how they were handling the slaughter.

“It can’t be true. He’s been a member of the Royal Guard for decades.”

“Maybe it wasn’t him,” Julian said. “We found a creature that could enter others’ bodies and use them at will. Maybe it was one of them.”

“Which would mean he’s also dead.”

“Yeah…” Julian said awkwardly. His attempt to help her was not working as he intended. “Whatever happened here, they didn’t attack us because they knew we would’ve killed them. We’re facing an army of cowards. We need to keep an eye open and continue the mission.”

“How?” Ana raised her face from the ground and looked at Julian.

Thalia held her hand tightly, trying to calm down the anger of losing the men that seemed to be born on Ana’s heart.

“We lost everything and everyone except for us,” the princess completed.

“In my head, we have two options. We can go back to Silverhold and organize a small party, bring fresh horses and provisions just for us, and continue our way…. Or we can go to the capital and organize a bigger expedition with more soldiers and equipment to secure us from these attacks. Even if I need to stay on guard the whole night, I’ll not allow other soldiers to die under my command.”

Thalia nodded at him, and Rayra did the same while Ana kept looking down, still having difficulty putting her feelings on hold.

“The storm and this killing have already made us lose half of the day,” Liz chimed in, looking at the sun almost at the top of their heads already. “If we go to Silverhold, we’ll lose another half-day. If we go to the capital, it’ll take at least a full day to set everything up. There will still be the risk of this happening again on a smaller scale.” She looked at Julian apprehensively before continuing, “I’m not saying I don’t trust your judgment or promise, but we need to prepare for the worst.”

Julian couldn’t agree more, but he had no other alternative. He had to find Marimar and the beastfolk if he wanted to have any chance to equal Fenrir’s numbers.

“What can you do, Mother?” Rayra asked, and they saw Ranabi shifting her weight uncomfortably.

“Nothing faster than what Thalia can do. Maybe I can summon griffins to come here, but they will take a while, and none is close to Silverhold or the capital.”

“We’ll have to risk it going with the least amount of support,” Julian said, pondering the wiser choice. They didn’t attack us, so they feared me and only wanted to delay us. With each day, Fenrir’s army of changed orcs increased. What will he accomplish if he convinces some humans to join his cause? In the end, even the captain of the guard seemed to have been bought or controlled.

“Time is of the essence,” he repeated the expression he had used several times on that trip, but it couldn’t be more accurate. “We’ll head to Silverhold via jump and return here to travel as fast as possible. With Thalia’s portal, we’ll be able to always return to sleep in the town and return in the morning with new horses. We’ll do that if the roads inside Thalia’s portals are safe.”

“We’ll avenge them, Ana,” Thalia said determinedly as she gave the princess a side hug. Ana swallowed her tears as she locked eyes with her old friend.

“We will,” she repeated in the same tone.

“And what about her?” Rayra asked, pointing one finger towards the carriage where the dragon lady rested.

Shit, I didn’t think it through, Julian thought, pinching his forehead and trying to come up with a solution to the matter.

“We can leave her under the care of Tarav. He knows how to tend wounds and will not harm her,” Liz said tentatively.

“What if she turns into a dragon and kills everyone at the manor?” Thalia asked sharply.

“I don’t think it’s wise to put her so close to the families she destroyed,” Rayra said, her arms crossed. Julian threatened to protest, but she continued. “I know you don’t believe she did it willingly, but it will not matter. Husbands lost their wives, and wives lost their husbands. It’ll be hard to explain that a god controlled her. If word of her being the dragon spreads among the workers, we could see discontentment or outrage in a house where it never flourished before.”

“So what? Should we just ditch her in the middle of the desert?” Julian asked sarcastically, and the silence was almost deafening in the camp. Their reaction dumbfounded Julian, disappointment barging into his heart. Until he realized their silence had nothing to do with the question. Their eyes were directed to the carriage where the ashen elf lady had slept for the last few days.

At the front of the door, she stood tall and completely naked. No traces of her clothes could be seen. Her pale skin was again seemingly translucent in the light. Her breasts were big and fell perfectly above her elbow line. She looked serene and calm, and a thick and melodic accent escaped her lips when she spoke.

“Where do you want to go, my mate? I’ll take you wherever.”

Chapter Eleven

Julian’s jaw almost touched the ground as the woman started walking towards him with a stroll. Her breasts slightly bounced as she moved, and Julian had to turn his head slightly to the side not to stare. He noticed Liz and Ana doing the same while Rayra and Thalia held their swords at hand.

“Why are you naked?” Julian asked, feeling his cheeks burning.

“Why was I dressed in lowly clothes? I don’t need them,” she said in an almost bored tone.

Julian stared at her in the eyes as she moved towards him. Her yellow eyes glowed with fiery intensity, while her magical aura expanded in all directions. It only competed with his own and Ranabi’s, who was close to Julian. The goddess remained calm and halted with her never-changing smile, showing no fear or wariness.

“But can you wear some? It would be easier to discuss.”

“You don’t like what you see?”

Julian swallowed dryly as he captured some inquiring eyes coming from his wives.

“It’s not that. It’s just not common to be undressed, at least not in this situation.”

“I can make the situation more fitting,” she whispered, and Julian realized she was already before him. “Why are you ashamed? We are already bonded. You defeated me in a fair duel. I’m now yours to breed.”

“What?!” Julian asked, the words escaping his mouth faster than he imagined.

“Do you have problems with your ears? Do I need to speak in a different volume for humans to understand?” she asked, looking at Ranabi, who was chuckling in her place. They clearly understood each other, at least as deities, and Julian could feel some measure of respect.

“He can understand you.” She lowered her head slightly. “Greetings, Zilri, The Primal Flame.”

“It’s good to see some respect. You are one of the new ones, aren’t you? Are you the big blue dragon? The one that despicable Fenrir hates so much?”

“No, this was my brother Cerulex. I’m Ranabi.”

“The bear.”

“The bear,” Ranabi repeated as they stood staring at each other. Julian could see their auras almost touching each other, as if sparks could come from it.

“So … he can understand me,” Zilri started, talking again to Ranabi.

“I’m right here. You don’t need to speak as if I wasn’t around.”

“This is better. Closer to the man I saw fighting in the skies,” she said, stepping up right next to him. Her large firm breasts were almost touching his chest, and Julian wondered what she was planning on doing. She smirked, and he thought she was going to give him a jab, but instead of hurting him, she grabbed his cock firmly. He hadn’t realized, but his member was hard as a rock beneath his trousers. He could feel it sore and sensitive from all the work he had put in yesterday, which only made the sensation even better.

The sudden action rendered the lord speechless, and he gulped at the moment—conflicted about whether he should feel bothered by the invasion or entirely on board with it. He was leaning more toward the second one. The goddess was smoking hot.

“Get your hands away from my man!” Rayra exclaimed with her bow raised and an arrow ready to be released.

“He’s not yours to touch, to breed, or anything else,” Liz said between gritted teeth.

Thalia and Ana said nothing, but their faces weren’t amiable. The elf-like woman licked her lips and before releasing the grip on his cock, she massaged it one more time, looking into Julian’s eyes and knowing he was enjoying it.

“He is the kind of male I’ve been waiting for,” she whispered, then moved away, raising both hands to the sky and looking at his wives. “I see that you are already his mates. Two of you already carry his offspring inside your womb, while the other two will soon be in the same position. I’ll not be in your way, but I’ll not be denied my right. This has been the law since before any of you arrived in this world. He won in battle, so as the law commands, I’m his to carry his seed and give him all the pleasure he wants.”

“Oh, for the Last. You’re not helping yourself,” Julian muttered, but the goddess looked sideways at him. “Can we change the subject? We can trade threats and discuss all the breeding parts later, alright?” he asked, but his cock was screaming in his mind for him to start discussing the breeding part now! The woman, who seemed to be called Zilri, grimaced but didn’t protest. Julian sighed and then looked at everyone.

“Can you please lower your weapons? She’s unarmed, for the Last’s sake.”

“She’s fucking naked, Julian!” Liz protested.

“I know!” he replied, and Ranabi chuckled once more. She was the only one having any fun at that moment.

“Can I provide you with some clothes? I promise they’ll be of the finest order,” Ranabi said, looking at Zilri, who, after some thought, nodded positively.

“Anything to not upset my mate,” she said in a playful way, and Julian pinched the bridge of his nose as he heard his wives twisting in place, jealousy taking over them as she looked slyly at him.

Ranabi waved her hand, and her typical green mist appeared. From the ground, roots sprouted, and then what seemed to be a small tree of several white flowers blossomed on the dry earth. Flowers transformed into what appeared to be fabric. They became a delicate dress, seemingly made out of silk but with intricate lace all over it. When the goddess put the dress on, Julian could still see a good part of her fantastic body beneath the almost transparent dress.

“You weren’t lying. This is perfect,” she said, looking at Ranabi and the other girls. “Do you like it, sisters?” she asked almost ironically and got only a grimace in response.

“Right. You said you could take us anywhere. I want to reach Marimar, the city of the Beastfolk. We know a direct way to do it, but it’ll take too long. We need to arrive there in less than eight days.”

“Is it your sanctuary?” Zildri asked Ranabi, who nodded. “I know how to reach it. After Fenrir tricked me, one of his missions was to guard the place and be aware of any movement there. Your people are known for the power to tame other animals or bond with them. Fenrir was secretly scared of it. However, I never needed to do anything. Before he commanded an attack, he disappeared.”

“Were you under a spell?”

“A leash, to say the least,” she said, her voice distant and full of pain and anger. “He tortured me for decades, using my power to strike terror upon the world. I, who had once been a goddess worshiped for my ferocity and raw power, was reduced to being the slave of a petty criminal. When he disappeared, I exiled myself, thinking I was lucky to escape his tendrils.”

“Until recently,” Julian said between gritted teeth, remembering what had happened in his home. His workers had died, and Tarav could’ve been one of them if Ranabi hadn’t been with them when they arrived.

“I only kill to eat, and I’m not a fan of human meat, mate,” she said, lowering her shoulders and looking directly at Julian. She moved towards him slowly. “I felt no pleasure in what I was forced to do. I’m sorry.”

Julian didn’t reply. He couldn’t forgive her at that moment, and any word he said would only make the situation worse.

“What’s the way you know?” Rayra asked, getting close and holding hands with Julian, giving him the emotional support she knew he needed.

“That direction,” she said, pointing to the south. “There are mountains at the edge of a giant valley inhabited by elephants and humanoids with lion faces. There’s a portal in the sky. I can fly inside it and reach your destination.”

“How much time?”

“One day.”

“Can you carry everyone?” Julian was finally able to ask.

She examined him, a sly smile forming on her face. “Can it not be only the two of us? It wouldn’t be wise⁠—”

“Can you carry everyone?”

“Yes, mate. I’ll do as you please. It will be dangerous and fast, but I’ll do it.”

“Great, we’ll prepare to travel as soon as possible,” he said, extending one hand to the goddess, who seemed disappointed with the gesture. “My name is Julian Lionheart.”

“It’s my pleasure to meet you, my mate,” she replied, kissing his hand.

Chapter Twelve

Putting all the soldiers inside one carriage wasn’t as tiring as he thought it would be. When Julian finished dumping the last one inside the more extensive carriage, his mind was exhausted. Ranabi offered to help and use her roots to move the soldiers from the tent to the vehicle, but Julian declined.

He felt responsible for the men, and while all his wives were feeling for him, he only thought it was right to let Ana help with the task. With that in mind, the slender woman gathered them by the feet before he could propose anything, while Julian caught them by the arms.

“It’s my fault,” she whispered as Julian closed the carriage door. Ranabi cast a spell on their bodies, a thin layer that seemed to be tree sap covering all their bodies. In Ranabi’s words, it would keep them conserved for a proper burial in the capital.

“It’s the traitor’s fault,” Julian said, sighing as they moved towards the center of the camp, where everyone waited for them to depart. He outstretched an arm for her, but she refused it. She grabbed his arm instead and said, “It is my fault. I recruited them because they shared the magic I own, because I thought I would be safe around them, and now they’re dead⁠—”

“But you had no way to know⁠—”

“But they died anyway. It’s my fault, and I’ll have to live with it. Now, I understand it clearly.” She straightened her back, and Julian saw her as the ruler he had almost forgotten she was. “It will be better if you understand it as well, Julian. I won’t dwell in guilt, but their lives were my responsibility.”

Julian let the words sink in as she held her hand firmly against his arm. He looked at his skin changing from pink to white around her fingers and felt she was more than serious.

“They were our responsibility. Don’t carry this weight alone. I’m here for you. Let’s make this right, together. We’ll punish the traitor and defeat Fenrir. We owe them that,” he said, trying to smile. Her face twitched briefly, and then she repeated the same awkward smile.

In that brief moment, Julian saw himself in her eyes and was sure he was also a mirror to her. Both had been brought into power earlier than anyone would expect, both were learning along the way, and both carried a weight too heavy.

“Let’s make this right,” she repeated in a mutter. She awkwardly stood on the tip of her toes and kissed him. Before he could say anything, she moved to the center of the camp where the others waited.

Zilri, the goddess of flames, sighed deeply and stretched her limbs before saying, “Can we go? I’m getting tired of waiting.”

“Aren’t you immortal?” Rayra asked, annoyed.

“So?”

“Time shouldn’t be that important to you.”

“I spent centuries bound against my will and forced to do another’s evil desires. Every second matters to me now.”

Even with the irony in the goddess’s voice, the truth and sincerity of her words seemed to leave an impression on Julian’s wives. He saw them sharing glances as she spoke. They all knew to some extent what Fenrir and his minions represented, and could imagine what it could feel like being forced to work for him against their volition.

Even being an immortal, Zilri didn’t seem the best with human expression. She didn’t catch the eyes of the girls, and her attention was devoted to Julian. When she spoke, her voice was strangely full of desire, even if there was nothing sensual or sexy in what she asked.

“May we start traveling, mate?”

Julian felt the hair on his neck stand on end as she spoke the words and saw all his wives frowning, shoving away any trace of sympathy that had previously appeared. If they still had problems with each other, it had seemingly disappeared when Zilri arrived with her strange ways. Julian was as aroused as he was embarrassed by it, but he swallowed the former and nodded in agreement.

“Excuse me. Please wait where you are,” Zilri said while she walked away. When she finally halted, she removed her nearly transparent dress and opened her arms. With her back turned to Julian, he could see the scar that went from her right shoulder to the base of her round ass. The scar was still red, but it seemed healed entirely, nonetheless. The end of it shone brighter as she outstretched her arms, and Julian suspected she had cringed in pain as she started her transformation.

Julian suppressed any guilt. He was trying to protect his family and the residents of Silverhold. At the time, he had no idea she was fighting against her will. He watched the white scales of her draconic body born inside the scars and then cover her whole body. The transformation was as quick as it was incredible. It wasn’t as magical as Rayra’s or even the same as when Zilri became a human. This one was more animalistic, and both Julian and his wives saw her bones cracking and rebuilding, changing shapes and sizes as she leaned on the ground, standing on all fours as her body became wholly white and expanded its proportions.

Julian saw her fingers turn into claws, and her back grew an immense bone that turned into her tail seconds before the first sharp vertebrae pierced her flesh. It was mesmerizing and disturbing, but he didn’t move a finger. She cried, first in her human tongue and then in her bestial form. The first was guttural, like that of a mother giving birth, while the second was as painful as a bird reacting to an arrow shot.

And then, silence. Julian assumed her transformation had ended when he saw her wings at the same size as on the day they fought and watched her pivot on her axis, as if she tested her dimensions and stretched her limbs. She halted and looked directly at them, then bellowed once more, this time not with pain or threats but with a welcoming gesture.

You can climb up now. Make everyone place both hands on my back and let me know when they do it, she said in her human voice in his mind.

“I can do it, but you can say it to everyone,” Julian said, confused as he turned to watch his wives, who looked even more confused. Ranabi stood as impassive as ever. “They can’t hear you?”

No. I can only talk to you. We share a bond older than time itself now. If we copulate together enough times, they can hear me as well.

Julian probably blushed because he noticed his wives' inquiring eyes as they approached him.

“What did she say?” Liz asked, her arms crossed as jealousy made her eyebrows almost touch each other. The others weren’t that far ahead in their grimaces.

“Only I can hear her because we’re now bonded as mates,” Julian said as firmly as possible. He understood their reactions and even somewhat enjoyed how much they cared for him. Still, they had a mission to fulfill, and Zilri had the possibility of becoming a great ally to their quest. The less they antagonized her, the better.

“Oh, by the Last. It’s real then,” Thalia said, her voice tinged with annoyance as she moved towards the dragon. “I’m late to this party, and I respect both those who came before and those who come after. But none of us barged our way in.”

“Exactly,” Rayra said, her arms lowered and her eyes piercing Julian’s. “We are ready to support you, Julian. But this can’t keep happening.”

“Ladies,” Julian started, his hands slowly moving from up to down as he gestured for them to pay attention and be as calm as possible. “I had no idea I would be bonded with her when I defeated the dragon that threatened to destroy Silverhold. She, of all people, didn’t ask for it.”

“But she doesn’t seem uncomfortable with it,” Rayra interrupted.

“It’s her nature. When you told me your most recent worries, wasn’t I understanding?” Julian asked firmly, and Rayra looked down with a rare blush as she held one arm with her other hand. The other girls all looked towards her, not understanding what they were talking about, but Julian wouldn’t expose Rayra’s personal questions. He just needed to stand firm in this situation.

“She’s different. I know. Give her some time. No matter what you think about this situation, we need her now, and she’s willing to help.”

They didn’t reply, but nodded in agreement, swallowing their pride and acting as adults.

“Good. Now, we must go. Climb on her back and put both hands on her scales. When everyone is ready, tell me.”

They started walking, and Zilri turned her back to them, lowered her tail, and slightly swung it from one side to the other as if showing them that they should climb from there.

Ana was the first to climb, and the other girls followed.

“Are you coming with us, or do you have other ways to travel?” Julian asked Ranabi as he put one hand on Zilri’s scales and felt their heat warm his already hot palms.

“I’ll go with you. I can only turn myself into a bear. As you know, I’m pretty fast in that form, but not as fast as her.”

“Great. Go ahead, then. I’ll be right behind you.”

Please, Julian. Ride at my neck, Zilri said inside his head as he was preparing to jump on her back, close to the tail.

“I don’t want to create more problems. They’re all angry already,” Julian muttered.

Please, it’s the tradition. There will be nothing wrong with it, I promise, Zilri said inside his mind, and he could feel her voice shifting. It wasn’t pleading, but almost sensual once more. She really cared about them doing the right thing at that moment, so he walked to her front. As she lowered her head, he climbed on her neck and put both hands on her scales.

“Everyone has their hands on Zilri’s body?”

“Yes!” they called from behind, and Zilri nodded her gargantuan head as she flapped her wings and prepared to fly to the skies. At the start, it was slow and in a low rhythm, but as they increased the height, the flappings became almost as violent as waves in a storm. When they reached close to fifty feet, Julian felt his hands getting even warmer. When he looked down, he realized her scales, just like the ones from the dragonborns, had grown to envelop them.

He felt a tinge of wariness crawling in his heart for a moment. Is she imprisoning us? Julian thought before trying to move his hand. When he did, he quickly realized he could remove his hand from the strange scales and put them back again. It was like holding a horse’s reins, but made of almost alien material. Nothing in the gooey touch Julian felt in his hands reminded him of his other life experiences.

He looked over his shoulder and saw everyone with their hands and their feet locked. Julian hadn’t even realized his feet and legs were in a similar situation, but when he did, he felt safer.

He smiled, and Zilri seemed to sense it because she snarled close to him, which Julian suspected was a chuckle.

“What?” he asked, but didn’t hear his voice amidst the wind.

I can feel your excitement. It’s almost as equal as when you saw me naked before, she said bluntly, and Julian felt once again his cheeks burning. Are we going to mate when we arrive at Marimar?

“We can’t. I’m faithful to my wives, but they haven't accepted you yet. Besides, you need to stop talking about these things so openly.”

Hum … She hummed in his mind. Yes, I came to the same realization, she said, her voice pondering inside his mind as she flapped her wings toward the south. I have socialized with several species in the past, but in the end, I always chose to be alone. I don’t quite understand the dynamics of power in your society.

“You speak very well for someone who didn’t socialize much.”

The dragon chuckled at his comment and had to take some time to readjust and speak again, making Julian doubt if she had said something or if the wind was just too loud for him to hear.

That’s a magic I never quite understood. I can communicate with almost any creature. It’s a ‘skill’ I learned long ago, she said, enticing Julian’s curiosity, but she was quick to change the subject. What I want to say is: the bond is sacred. I can feel it as I can feel my wings. We established it when you defeated me in combat. However, I understand that can be quite overwhelming for the other females in our pack.

“My wives,” Julian corrected her.

Of course. I can get you into Marimar and head my way. I prefer to stay close to you and work against Fenrir, but if you want, I can come back later when they understand.

Julian let the words sink in as they kept flying. She didn’t press him, flapping her wings and maneuvering her enormous body to dodge one cloud or another loaded with rain.

“The farther you get from our family, the harder it will be to accept you. My wives are the best people I know. They’ll like you if you show them some of this side you’re showing me now,” Julian finally said, gripping the scales with more force as she turned her body again. He was completely safe, but when his side faced the ground below, it was impossible not to feel his heart racing and his stomach growing cold.

And you? Zilri asked. Her voice seemed to falter, almost as if she was scared of the answer.

“Give me some time,” Julian said gently, and she seemed to snort.

Your cock doesn’t seem to need time.

Julian chuckled at the joke, looking at the horizon with a smile. “My cock is quite determined on that matter,” he finally said, and that seemed to calm down the dragon.

I’ll win over the other pack females. Soon, we’ll all mate together. Even if I need to stop inviting you to fuck me. Her words rang with her burning determination. Julian grinned as they kept traveling through the sky.

Chapter Thirteen

They reached the vale the following morning. Zilri asked several times if they wanted to stop to eat or rest on the ground, but they kept denying it. Julian slept on the back of the dragon, finding comfort in her warm scales as the howling, cold wind threatened to disturb his peace. His wives were able to sleep as well and were in a similar humor, wanting to return to the capital with something to show as quickly as possible.

Zilri didn’t seem bothered or tired from flying for almost a whole day. When they arrived at the vale and Julian saw the semi-arid landscape being replaced by a green one full of rivers and wildlife, his eyes glimmered, and a smile barged onto his face.

He saw a couple of elephants down below, other creatures with horns above their nostrils, and many more strange animals. None were the humanoids with lion heads, but Julian didn’t doubt there was one of them waiting down below. Zilri slowed her flight for him and his wives to contemplate the view and hummed with pleasure with any reaction one of them expressed about how lovely it was to fly on her back. She didn’t seem like a murderous beast in Julian’s mind as they descended and soared over the animals who kept minding their own business as if they weren’t there.

Are we close? Julian asked in his mind, testing if it would work. Zilri didn’t seem to hear him, and he tried again, putting intent into the words reaching out to her. This time, he noticed she glanced back at him as if his established connection scratched something inside her head.

You learned how to use telepathic communication. That’s impressive.

Thank you. So, are we close? Julian asked, having difficulty putting emotion or tone into his internal voice.

Behind the mountain at the edge of the valley, she said, and Julian looked toward where her eyes were aiming. The mountain was as high as the flying pearl, so high that its peak was covered in snow, creating a beautiful contrast with the vale below.

At the top?

Above the top, she completed, and Julian leaned against her scales as if wanting to absorb as much heat as possible before they had to go so high into the sky. She seemed to like it, but didn’t say a word.

When Julian looked over his shoulder, he realized all his wives were doing the same. Ranabi, on the other hand, kept looking at the ground below, undeterred by the cold wind or the immense speed Zilri traveled.

Anything we should be prepared to face?

The mountain is full of apes. The few times I landed there, they were aggressive.

We don’t plan to land there.

Exactly, she said, and Julian felt the wind becoming more violent as she increased her speed. The previous slow and contemplative flight had become an immense blur of speed and action. Julian couldn’t hear anything. It was tough to keep his eyes open, but at least he was sure they were close to their destination, and that was enough to make him endure.

He peeked with his eyelids barely ajar and saw the white mountain growing more extensive as the seconds passed. Julian saw rivers of blue water falling from the hill and freezing along the way. Strange goats climbed the rocks, only to fall from massive heights and start again. And then there were the apes.

As they approached the mountain, Zilri banked again and started to circle the immense hill as she rose in the air gently, making the heightening less abrupt. Julian wasn’t the best student in engineering. Still, he remembered his tutors at the Iron Fist Academy talking about the strange effects of using magic to construct objects that could reach great heights. He knew he had felt some of those effects when he fought Zilri the other day and was glad she was sparing his wives from it.

The apes on the mountain almost blended in with their surroundings. Their fur was so white that it nearly highlighted them against the not-so-pristine white of the snow. They were only distinguishable amidst nature because their faces could be seen from a greater distance. They had dark-as-night snouts, with red mouths and big black eyes. From a distance, the gargantuan white mountain seemed to be filled with tiny black dots, and for each pair of dots, an ape halted to see them circling the hill.

Why are they climbing down the mountain? Julian asked Zilri, whose head lowered to look down as she realized the same as Julian.

That’s … strange, she finally said, changing her eyes to the target above them. Maybe a seasonal habit. I never saw them going down like that.

It was definitely strange. Not exactly because the monkeys were climbing down the mountain, but because they were all together, really close to each other. They descended the hill considerably faster than expected, as if they were being forced to migrate or escaping from a disastrous bitter wind or cold at the top of the mountain.

Julian had heard that apes warred just like humans and other races. They killed, enslaved, and tortured enemies. Several news articles talked about those discoveries, and when Julian questioned his teachers, they said they were true. Was that what he was seeing? A tribe being outcast by another one? He knew one or two professors who would enjoy investigating it.

Zilri kept flying around the mountain, with the peak becoming closer. They were still at the beginning of the morning, probably two or three hours away from noon, and the sun seemed quite satisfied with hiding behind the immense trees covering the mountain’s peak.

The portal is above the clouds, Zilri said inside his mind, and Julian passed the message to the others, who nodded and smiled. Everyone was eager to get down from the dragon’s back and feel the land under their feet again.

The only person who didn’t smile was Rayra. Julian couldn’t imagine how nervous she was about returning to her family. Amidst the war and the need to find new allies, Julian had forgotten about this side of their trip and felt terrible for it. We’ll talk as soon as we reach the city, Julian promised internally as he looked again at Rayra. Her eyes weren’t looking towards him or the edge of the mountain—now covered with pairs of eyes—she looked to the top of the giant hill and even pointed one hand towards it.

Julian couldn’t hear the words, but could decipher them by how she moved her lips. The message was clear.

“What the fuck are they doing?” she asked loudly, trying to make her sister wives listen, but only Julian was paying attention.

When he looked in the direction she was looking, he saw what had claimed her attention. Julian could see a great line of apes that seemed to be almost holding hands on one edge of the slope because of how close they were to each other. They were all halted, as if waiting for something. Zilri flew them close, almost hugging the mountain’s wall. When they turned to circle it again, passing just below the animals in line, the apes on the mountain edge leaped off directly towards them.

Julian’s eyes widened as he saw the apes jump willingly to their death, but then he saw the truth. These apes’ eyes were red as blood, and from one of their eyes, a snake of different colors seemed to be escaping the eye socket and entering the mouth in an eternal movement where the head never appeared. Julian had seen these creatures before.

“Careful!” Julian shouted. “Above us!” The dragon had time to react and turned her body to the side just as more monsters jumped from the mountain. Most of them fell to the ground, where the mind-controlling snakes would probably find another creature to kill and inhabit the body. Another handful of apes tried to grab hold on the dragon’s scales with force and sharp nails. Some even had rudimentary weapons made of rock and wood that they tried to use to gain purchase on the dragon. Given Zilri’s size, a few of the apes were able to gain purchase and scramble up.

“They were taken!” Julian screamed, and the dragon seemed to understand the message. She had been a member of Fenrir’s army, and even being against her will, she probably knew what they were facing.

Julian counted five apes over her left wing, slowly reaching the bulk of her body while trying to strike her wings. Even though they attacked Zilri, they seemed more interested in catching Julian and his wives.

The lord gathered energy in his left hand and prepared to attack, but as soon as he felt the small energy forming in his hand, he realized he couldn’t shoot it. He and Thalia were probably the only two who could hurt the dragon. The apes were more of a nuisance than a real danger to Zilri, but if he released a blast, and it burned her wings? They would crash against the mountain and probably die.

Julian tried to scream to Thalia not to attack, but his voice didn’t reach her. He saw her gathering energy in her hand, but before striking, she looked at him, searching for approval. He shook his head violently, and she refrained. Good! Julian felt proud of her discipline. He had told her the dangers of arcane magic, and until she was completely confident, she needed to ask for his help. Thanks to the Last, she was a good student.

When she looked at him, his other wives’ eyes seemed to follow, and Julian waved his head for them to attack. Rayra nocked arrows, and Liz prepared her water daggers. They released the attacks almost instantly, aiming at different targets and throwing them from the back of Zilri. There were only two monsters on the dragon’s back, and she prepared to ascend with more speed toward the portal in the sky.

She turned her body, with her belly aiming towards the mountain, which almost made Rayra lose her bow. Then, instead of flying directly to the portal, she spat fire on the hill beside her. Julian couldn’t see where she was aiming as the fire became too bright and too hot. From the flames, he could hear the shrieks of apes and, amidst it, sounds that seemed almost human.

More of the taken creatures were hidden at a higher peak, ready to attack. Even amidst the flames, Julian saw them jumping and falling fast towards them. They didn’t panic with the attack; instead, they just kept jumping with their bodies all covered in flames. Julian saw three falling over the dragon’s face, close to her eye. She shook her head, and one of the apes flew to the ground below, but the second one grabbed one of Zilri’s eyelids.

The monster was on the verge of falling, but its grip seemed strong enough to hold it there for a few more seconds. Sunlight shone against something in the opposite hand of the ape, and Julian shivered as he realized it had a dagger in its hands. Even with Zilri shaking her head violently, the ape didn’t release its grip on her. It would have enough time to strike Zilri’s eyes, and Julian didn’t want to be on the back of a dragon as she was hit in the eye. She could easily crash them against the mountain without even realizing it.

Putting no more thought into it, Julian released his hands and legs from the dragon’s body and let the wind guide him.

He commanded the mana to drive him away before he could hit one of his companions on her back. The pull was stronger there. He wasn’t sure why, but it was making him go faster. In two moments, he was already beside Zilri’s huge head. Her eye was wide open, as if she knew she couldn’t control herself if the monster on her eyelid struck. Julian breathed deeply, unsheathed his sword, and again drove his flight in a new direction.

He had to turn on his axis to strike in the correct position. Just as the ape descended its sharp knife towards Zilri’s eye, Julian severed its hand with a powerful and clean strike.

Zilri shook her head and blinked several times until the hand lost its grip on her eyelid. Julian observed her, searching for wounds as they flew to the skies. She seemed to adjust her speed to fit his flight, and they kept going side by side, watching their surroundings as they went up.

The apes shrieked and started to sing in unison.

“Julian! Julian! We came for you!” they screamed as they jumped from another ledge. These apes were way bulkier than the first.

Back! Zilri shouted inside his mind as she spat fire on the upcoming foes. The top of the mountain was near. They just needed to end these last apes, and everything would be fine.

The wall of flames hit the monsters, and then a blinding light came from Ranabi’s direction. The monsters screamed as they burned, but they kept falling towards Julian. Their bodies were on fire, and their eyes were white as milk with the blinding power of Ranabi, and they kept going. More than ten fell on the dragon’s back, far from Julian’s reach. He threatened to go to the aid of his wives, but watched with pride as they dispatched the apes before the apes could set any of his wives on fire.

The single one who could have hurt Rayra was quickly thrown to the ground below, and Liz quickly extinguished her aflame lock of hair. Julian turned his head to the wall of flame, preparing to fight any foe that tried to deny them the flight to the portal.

He severed one ape in half that flew directly toward Zilri’s eyes and watched her eat another one in full as she snapped her jaws completely open. She tore the creature with fury and spat it away, making another ball of fire and throwing it on the last wave of jumping apes.

Julian’s patience ended as he saw the white silhouettes approaching. He sheathed his sword and made a whip in his left hand. Then he made another and flew, holding a whip in each hand. Julian swiped both whips as he heard crackling hair and flesh passing through the flames as if forming a cross. He swung them so fast and violently that anyone in the valley below could have listened to the two magical weapons touching each other after severing limbs, torsos, and heads in a quick but effective single motion.

The bodies fell to the side of their heads as the wall of flame disappeared, and no apes could be heard anymore.

Couldn’t you do that before, mate? Zilri asked inside his mind with more curiosity than sarcasm in her voice.

Maybe. I had never tried it before.

Oh, she said, her voice tinged with surprise. I thought your looks were due to your magic. You’re indeed young, aren’t you?

I’m twenty-two, Julian said casually. It didn’t matter how old he was. Only the things he had done in the last few months were more critical or risky than thousands of people from Alinera and all the other corners of the world.

Good. We’ll have plenty of time to enjoy each other, then, she said as she started to pick up speed again. “Please go back and sit on my back. We’re near the portal.”

Julian didn’t reply; he flew slowly to her neck, sat, and waited for the scale magic to begin. Only when he felt utterly fixated on her back did he release his hands and let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding.

He looked over his shoulder and saw that everyone was safe and sound. His wives smiled at him as they realized their objective was far more reachable than they had thought initially. They had lost good men in the process and probably been betrayed by another one Julian had thought was good, but they made it anyway.

Julian let these thoughts inundate his mind as he felt their bodies passing through a thin, invisible layer of reality. It was like sticking a finger in water that was about to freeze. The layer stretched until it couldn’t take their weight anymore, but never slowed their ascent.

The dragon kept flying, flapping her wings against reality until it was broken like glass. Julian heard it cracking and shattering all around him, but before he could see the world actually in shambles, he saw it changing. He expected to find another brick road before him, maybe one of a different color with a distinct horizon waiting for them, but what he saw was mind-boggling.

He was in a complete void, but somehow, he could see his surroundings. Everyone seemed to change. Their features weren’t distinguishable anymore, and their silhouettes were a fine line of white that marked them inside that black immensity of reality. He tried to speak, but his voice didn’t exist anymore. He tried to communicate with Zilri inside her head and even tried to reach out to his connection with Thalia, but he found nothing.

He felt like someone else had borrowed his existence, and he had to wait in the pitch black until it was returned. He saw Zilri flapping her wings and saw his wives moving their limbs, trying to speak in gestures, but nothing made sense. A gust of wind hit him violently in the face, causing him to close his eyes, and when he opened them again, the world had color again.

The sounds of nature assaulted his ears so hard that Julian almost moved his hands to cover his ears to muffle the sounds. He shook his head and looked to the sides. They were still on Zilri’s back, but not in the void anymore. Instead, they soared above the thickest forest Julian had ever seen. He could feel the sun reaching the place from an angle it shouldn’t be by this time of day. He felt beads of sweat form on his forehead, and his nose suddenly felt itchy. The air was moist, and the birds chirped so loudly they could drive someone mad.

It was like they were warning the other animals their group had arrived.

“We’re here,” Rayra said from behind him as Zilri slowed the flapping of her wings with speed and only soared, gliding in the sky. Rayra kept looking at her surroundings with a big smile on her face. Julian suspected it was so big that she was probably in pain. “I can’t believe it! I’m actually here, and I have Ranabi at my side.”

“Congratulations, young one,” Ranabi said with her typical smile. “You can now rest your mind. I’ll make sure your work here is recognized.”

“Where should we go?” Julian asked, looking at Rayra with curious eyes. He couldn’t wait to reach the ground and hug her. He was so proud of her and so eager to finally meet her family.

“We don’t need to go anywhere. They’re already coming,” she said, pointing at the horizon as several dots started to fly fast in their direction.

As soon as the creatures appeared on the horizon, the birds in the trees below stopped their mad chirping, and the ones ahead started their own. Their caws in the distance seemed more like a war chant than a sound birds made. It was rhythmic and loud, rumbling like the drums of a battleship.

Julian didn’t take long to realize they were eagles coming towards him, but these weren’t ordinary eagles. They were at least the size of a griffin, if not bigger. Their orange beaks shone in the light as their white and black plumage made them look regal. However, when they approached, Julian realized the creatures were showing their claws. Each one was as big as a small dagger.

Zilri started to gather fire in her neck, and Julian slowly caressed her scales with one hand.

“Wait.”

She did as he commanded, swallowing the fire back into her belly, and waited. The animals ahead of them recoiled their claws and returned to a routine flight, circling them as they seemed to analyze what was happening. One of the creatures stopped cawing and flew slowly in Julian’s direction, its bird eyes twitching from side to side and examining the lord’s expression with a keen eye.

“I’m not an enemy.”

The eagle looked directly at the dragon’s head and back at Julian as if asking why he was with her.

“She’s an ally.”

The eagle shrieked as if amused by Julian’s words. It gave him a last look before turning towards the other group members. It examined them until it stopped at Rayra’s position. The bird chirped high in the sky, flapping its wings rapidly. Julian couldn’t read every animal’s expression, but he assumed this one could only be very angry or happy. He expected the latter but started to gather energy in his left hand if the first came to fruition.

The bird dashed away fast, approached the others that still circled, and started flying away.

“What was that?” Julian asked, looking towards Rayra, who only pointed towards the eagles already approaching the horizon. “Follow them.”

Zilri didn’t need another word. She seemed as curious as Julian and flew fast towards the other animals. Soon, they were above her as they guided only a little ahead.

The whole flight took less than five minutes. The woods never seemed to grow less thick, but an immense crater appeared in the middle of the forest after a while. There was no sign of trees being cut or anything like that. It was more like a giant ball had been removed from the ground—on the size of Silverhold. Julian slowly realized it wasn’t simply a crater as they descended towards the hole.

There were roads connecting it to the forest above, and a plain city waited below at the center of the crater. Thousands of small cabins made a picturesque scene in the shadow of the giant walls circling the city. Seen from above, it looked like several dollhouses perfectly sat next to each other, but as they descended, Julian realized the houses were big. And even with them being quite similar, Julian saw that some had two floors, while others had three or just one. They were all made of wood and only varied in tones of red.

From above, Julian couldn’t identify the different districts of the city. What he could see was its organization; people and vehicles moved like ants towards the center or its edges. The roads only served one direction at a time. Even the birds flying above the city seemed to follow a strict order not to disrupt the other’s flights.

Julian had never seen an anthill from the inside, but he would bet this looked quite similar. As they descended, the city only grew more prominent in Julian’s eyes, and the same could be said about the crater. Whatever had crashed there was probably the most enormous thing ever on the planet.

The birds changed their direction to the right side of the city, flying low but not low enough to disrupt the birds flying below them. The dragon kept close, but far enough to try not to call much attention. Due to her size, the task was impossible. The other birds and flying creatures flew away in panic as they traveled through the sky.

When they were low enough to catch some people’s features on the street, Julian quickly realized the city was a mix of animals and beastfolk living in harmony. Both species turned their heads to look in their direction as they traveled through the city. They kept walking their way, but their faces kept turning towards them from time to time, and their travel speed seemed to decrease exponentially.

Julian was more than impressed. If a dragon flew above Silverhold, people would be running and shitting their pants before they even thought about their responsibilities. These people were much more than disciplined. Julian understood now why Rayra could be so harsh and why she was so competent. Her people demanded no less.

Their flight lowered to a point where the more prominent buildings were only a few feet from Zilri’s belly, and Julian started to get worried about an accident when the buildings disappeared and they reached one of the edges of the crater.

This place was mostly empty, and Julian saw more than a few perches waiting for the animals. More than half of the eagles went directly to the perches, resting on their feet and lowering their heads to drink water and eat some meat. However, three of the birds stopped, looking directly at them.

Zilri stopped her flight slowly, only stopping flapping her wings when she put her legs on the ground. Julian felt a heavy weight leave his body when she dropped to the ground and lowered herself for them to get down.

When he touched the ground, he thought he would fall with the numbness in his legs, but he used mana to strengthen his spine and make his feet firmer. His other companions didn’t have much more luck. He saw Liz and Thalia almost fall as Ana helped them stay put. Rayra was the only one who seemed to be well enough to walk.

She smiled immensely when she walked towards the giant eagles waiting for her. One of the birds was way more extensive than the others, while the other two were half its size but thrice the size of a normal animal.

Rayra started to walk and then to run.

“Father! Brothers!” she shouted, and Julian heard her voice wavering with each word. A green mist formed in front of the two eagles in front of them and surrounded them. When they were visible again, a man and two teenagers were in their place.

The man was as thin as one could be without being unhealthy. He had a goatee, plenty of wrinkles showing his age, and thin lips. He looked more like a drawing than a real man, but Julian felt his aura when he opened his arms to embrace his daughter. The other two were also thin but had more muscle on their build. They didn’t have facial hair and probably hadn’t passed the sixteen-year mark, but they looked healthy and robust. Their eyes were as yellow as Rayra’s, but besides that, they didn’t look like her at all.

They hugged each other in a tight and quick embrace, and when they parted, Julian saw that Rayra had tears falling from her face. Any semblance of her badass persona completely disappeared as she looked into the eyes of her family.

“Daughter,” her father said in a surprisingly grave voice for his build. “I thought I’d never see you again.”

“Me too,” she whispered, and he looked at her with grieving eyes.

“I should’ve dispatched you when you arrived, but I had to see you with my own eyes and give you a hug. The council will not take this lightly, my dear. They’ll punish me, but you’ll see your mother, nonetheless. I’ll bring her here before you go.”

The man started to walk away quickly, but Rayra held his hand tightly.

“I need to do it fast, Daughter. We entered here with a dragon; the others will come soon.”

“Let them come, Father. I fulfilled my mission,” she said firmly, and her posture was suddenly strong again.

“You did what?” he asked, his eyes widening as he searched the surroundings, looking for the goddess they had been searching for millennia.

His eyes darted from each party member, but no one seemed to strike a bell in the man’s mind. Until he looked again at Ranabi, and as if finally seeing her aura and serene smile, he kneeled and let his forehead touch the ground. Rayra’s brothers quickly followed, and Ranabi strolled towards them.

“Rise, my sons. I don’t require worship. I didn’t know you needed me, but Rayra found me and brought light to my eyes.” They raised their heads and looked towards Ranabi with tearful eyes. “Jito, go and warn the council of my presence. I’ll address the people from here.”

“Right, Goddess. I’ll do as you command,” Rayra’s father replied as he rose with his head still bowed. “I’ll make sure everyone is here,” he said, wiping the tears from his eyes. But before he went, he looked again towards Rayra, who couldn’t contain her smile. “You did it!” he said before turning into an eagle again and flying away.

Rayra ran towards Julian with her arms open and kissed him firmly. It was a reckless kiss, but one Julian would remember forever. He let her happiness leak through that gesture as his hands tightened around her waist, and his smile became as big as hers.

Ranabi turned into a bear before their eyes. And thankfully, her transformation wasn’t as painful as Zilri’s, who opted to remain a dragon for the rest of the event that started to unfold.

“You are so tall!” Rayra patted her brothers on the head with more force than needed. Her brothers were smaller than her and were as shy as anyone could’ve been. When they looked into her eyes, Julian saw they deeply admired her, and he could understand that.

Ranabi walked to the center of the remaining empty place and raised a little stage made of roots beneath her feet. She stood tall and talked with every person that approached her. Soon, a crowd formed, and Julian had to walk to the other end of the space to speak with his companions. Zilri curled into herself inside her wings and tail in one corner, and the beastfolk were more than content to ignore her.

Are you sleeping? Julian reached her inside his mind, and she only grunted a “yeah” as he leaned against her warm scales and talked.

His other companions were also resting, leaning against Zilri’s body. The only person away from them was Rayra, who talked with deep emotion to her brothers. Julian saw them glaring at him more than once with widened eyes. He waved at them, and they seemed almost surprised by it. Julian smiled as he watched another eagle flying towards them. Julian thought it to be Rayra’s father, Jito, and his assumption proved correct as the man slowly became a humanoid again. His looks didn’t make him seem like a beastfolk at all to Julian’s eyes, yet he could transform himself just like Rayra.

“Come here, there’s someone I want to introduce you to,” she said to her brothers and father. Now that they were close, Julian realized one of the brothers was shorter than the other and had a more childlike face—probably the little brother Rayra had told Julian about it in the cave inside the mirror realm. It was only months ago, but it felt like ages had passed.

The group approached Julian, who moved away from Zilri and towards Rayra’s father.

“This is Julian. My husband.” The old man couldn’t hide his surprise when she uttered the words. His eyes widened as he glared from Julian to Rayra at immense speed. “He helped me find Ranabi, saved my life several times, and is the love of my life.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Julian said with a gentle smile and a bow. “It’s a pleasure to meet all of you.” He looked at Rayra’s brothers, who hid their shyness behind a grin.

“This is Liz, my sister-wife. She’s an excellent battle mage, a fearsome warrior, and my best friend.” Her father’s surprise grew. It wasn’t common for beastfolk to have relationships with humans; it was far less common to have relationships with several ones.

“This is Thalia. She’s an arcane mage like Julian and also my sister-wife. She’s brave and loyal. We are still getting to know each other, but she’s a valuable family member.” There was no more space for surprise on the older man’s face. When Rayra started talking again, Julian assumed her father would take the rest like a breeze.

“This is Anasthasia. She’s a steel mage, my sister-wife, and the princess regent of the whole Alinera Realm.”

The older man’s mouth opened this time, and Julian suspected it would reach the ground.

“Are you trying to give me a heart attack, Daughter?” he was finally able to say. His words were more of a stutter than an actual sentence. “I need time to process it, and please don’t tell me anything more.”

The older man raised both hands in a halt position and looked towards Julian and his wives.

“Don’t take me badly. I’m more than happy that my daughter found love outside our walls. Only Ranabi knows how much I prayed for her to find good companions to help her on her mission, or at least alleviate the loneliness of her duty. I didn’t expect to have so many new spouses!” he said, then laughed. The kids behind him chuckled as well, as they seemed to be amused by their father’s embarrassment.

“I welcome all of you to Marimar, and I want to speak with you further, but I suspect I’ll want to hear Ranabi’s speech.”

“You will,” Julian said as the old man prepared to leave.

“It’ll be better this way. What would be the next thing you’d tell me? That dragon behind you is also your sister-wife? Are you pregnant?” Rayra’s father said, laughing hard and slapping his belly with his palms.

Julian grimaced, looking at Rayra’s brothers, who chuckled harder. Thankfully, Rayra’s father didn’t see it, and everyone laughed when he was far away.

“Oh, by the Last, we need to find a good way to tell him the rest,” Julian said, wiping a tear from his eye as he laughed. “I don’t want to kill your father with news of all things.

“He’ll handle it, right guys?” Rayra asked, embracing her brothers with both arms, but they were quick to evade her and run towards Julian.

“Rayra told us you’re an arcane mage and that you defeated that dragon right there. Is that true?” the older one asked, but before Julian could answer, the other also spoke.

“Is it true you killed a giant sea snake?”

“Your sister already told you all this?”

“And more!” the youngest called with enthusiasm.

“I guess some of it is indeed true. Do you want to hear the whole story?”

“Yes!” they shouted in unison as Julian sat on the ground to tell them some of his tales.

When Julian finished talking about the day, they fought blood goblins and invisible cyclops inside his mining dungeon. The crowd surrounding Ranabi had grown exponentially.

The kids wanted to hear more, but Rayra waved them to get up.

“You’ll want to hear this,” she said with a smile as she grabbed them by the arm and pulled them near the crowd. Her touch might not have been as gentle as any other older sibling's, but the kids didn’t care.

The place that Julian now assumed to be a landing strip couldn’t be described as such anymore. They could be anywhere because, in every direction Julian looked, he saw people crowding around. Julian saw people with all sorts of animal mixtures: some had cat ears and tails, others had elephant trunks, and others looked like the lion people Zilri had described. They were taller than everyone else, and their manes could cover the vision of three or four other bystanders.

Some spectators preferred to fly above the crowd, taking care not to get too close to Ranabi. If Julian had paid real attention to the beastfolk gathered, he would have been sure he could find animals he had never seen before and all the ones he already knew.

That’s why he set his curiosity aside and focused on the giant bear standing tall and regal above the crowd. Ranabi’s aura shone as bright as ever. When she looked at her people below, Julian could swear he could see a smile on her animal face.

“I returned!” she spoke, echoing through the open space. The crowd went silent for a few seconds and then erupted in cheers. “My daughter, Rayra, found me where I had exiled myself willingly. Where I chose to spend the rest of my days. I had considered my exile as the right path to keep the world safe.”

This time, there weren’t cheers or applause. The crowd kept silent, listening to what she had to say. The first words made some of them trade glances, and grim expressions appeared amidst the crowd.

“I wasn’t aware of your search for me. I wasn’t aware you needed my presence. I thought everything was well settled when I left, but I can see my mistake now. I am deeply sorry for abandoning you,” she said. Julian could hear her voice faltering with sadness engulfing her throat as she spoke. The crowd reacted instantly, trying to comfort the goddess, but she raised one of her paws to continue. “Rayra told me of your search, of how you considered me lost to this world and in some way… I was, but I’ll not go anywhere now. I’m here to build a new history with all of you by my side.”

The crowd erupted in cheers, happiness washing over them. Julian saw many clapping while others jumped to the skies and screamed in pure ecstasy. He was happy for them, but it was hard to smile when he knew the following words coming from her mouth.

“However, to bring peace and prosperity to my people and create a new era here in Marimar and all corners of the world, I’ll need your help.”

“Everything for you!” a voice called from the crowd, and others followed. The bear seemed to smile but remained as stoic as possible as the crowd slowly silenced itself again.

“The enemy is once more at our doors⁠—”

“Are the humans attacking?!” a desperate voice called from the crowd, but Ranabi continued, raising her voice and preventing the crowd from getting desperate.

“I know you remember the war you fought against humans centuries ago. I was informed of this by Rayra, and I know there’s still bad blood between you. However, I’m talking about an older enemy that most of you probably only heard of as telltales. Fenrir and his dragons are at our door.”

Several eyes darted towards Zilri and Julian, still resting and recoiling between her tail and wings. Julian saw anger, fear, and wariness in those beastfolk eyes.

“I’m not talking about the elder dragons like Zilri, who’s helping us in this fight. I’m talking about the dragonborns and all the devious creatures Fenrir created to mimic the dragon’s powers. They are back, and they have the orcs at their side. Soon, they will arrive at Alinera, and that will be just the first step in their crusade against life itself.”

The beastfolk started to hush nervously as she said those words. The myth of Fenrir and his evil deeds finally ringing a bell inside the crowd’s mind. There was no doubt the goddess was right, only fear of what was to come.

“Fret not, my children,” Ranabi said, raising one hand and making roots break the ground below Julian and his companions as a new stage was raised. Ranabi smartly left Zilri out of it and raised all others to the sky.

“We’re here in good faith,” Julian chimed in, speaking loudly enough for everyone to hear, letting the mana flow through his body, making his hair wave, and a small blue aura covered all of his presence. “The future King Consort and Queens of Alinera are here to ensure you’ll have a lot of company while fighting Fenrir’s forces. We'll send Fenrir back to oblivion with your determination, tamed beasts, your magic, and ours. As Cerulex’s descendant, I swear this.”

Julian said the last words as he crashed an arcane blast into the palm of his hands, which shattered into several pieces. The ball had burned with immense light, and when they looked at him, the crowd was once again utterly silent.

“Did I exaggerate?” Julian asked Anasthasia, who held hands with him.

“I don’t think so,” she replied between gritted teeth as she kept her grin from ear to ear. “Look.”

Julian followed her gaze and saw the beastfolk’s eyes. There was no more fear amidst the crowd, only a silent shock mixed with admiration.

“We have the allies to defeat Fenrir once and for all. This time, I’ll not need to exile myself to fulfill a promise after defeating him. We’ll crush his forces to the ground, and after that, the world will be at peace. You’ll not need to fear anymore.”

“I promise to make this alliance not one of war but one of peace,” Anasthasia stated, her posture the same as that of a queen again, her chin held high, and her smile ever present. “We’ll end the animosities, the old laws, and the sanctions. The beastfolk will have my protection, eternal gratitude, and total freedom to do what you must.”

The crowd erupted in cheers at that moment. Anasthasia’s words rang in their ears like a siren’s chant. Some places on the continent still didn’t permit beastfolk due to the last war, and others where the discrimination was more covert with unspoken rules of not hiring beastfolk. That was why it was so hard to see them around, and when they did appear, animosity often resurfaced.

Most of Alinera’s residents didn’t even remember why there was so much bad blood, but since the beastfolk had returned to their own magical home country almost in full, no one seemed to care. On the other hand, the people of Marimar were tired of being outcasts and had purer hearts than the different races, accepting the idea of ending the conflict with open arms.

This time, no one interrupted the crowd’s reaction. Everyone kept waving hands and smiling at them until the excitement died, and they started waiting for someone else to speak. Their eyes darted from the stage where Ranabi was to the one where Julian and his wives stood. It was Ranabi who broke the silence.

“We just spent the last day flying on the back of an elder dragon, and before reaching this place, we fought some possessed apes. In other words, we’re utterly tired. We need a place to stay and rest. We’ll start the preparations tomorrow.”

The crowd agreed with the goddess and opened a space for her to descend from the root stage. Julian heard more than a dozen voices offering their own homes for the goddess to stay. She declined them with politeness and explained she had a place of her own to go. The beastfolk bowed and let her walk through the crowd to the end of the landing strip. She said nothing to Julian or his companions, but he wasn’t bothered by it.

“And what are we doing?” Julian asked, already suspecting what the answer would be.

“We’re going to my home, of course,” Rayra replied, grabbing Julian by one hand and pulling him. “Excuse me, sis, I have much to show you.” Anasthasia smiled gently as Rayra led Julian to where Zilri waited for them.

She instructed the dragon to follow her brothers in the sky, and Julian’s other wives went on the back of the dragon, agreeing silently to let Rayra have Julian to herself for some moments. She was probably dying to showcase her home to him finally.

“I want to see everything,” Julian said as he grinned and hugged her waist. That elicited an even bigger smile from the kitsune. She looked so radiant and so different from the last few days. Even her aura seemed to shine a brighter light. She kissed him eagerly, but she pulled him with force onto a street connecting to the landing strip before he could kiss her back.

“Let’s get my reward!” she exclaimed, making him almost run to keep up with her rhythm.

“I had no idea there was a reward.” Julian followed her, almost tripping on his feet with the speed at which she pulled him.

Chapter Fourteen

They rushed through the streets, which slowly became crowded again. Most people had resumed their work, walking through the woods and exiting the crater or doing their business in the middle of town.

The crater's walls made the city look darker than it was supposed to be, requiring lamps to be lit in every corner of the streets. The place seemed eerily charming, the total opposite of Silverhold or the Capital. Julian watched the small buildings that looked pretty much the same in every direction he gazed.

Rayra pointed out the tamer’s district, which was strategically placed close to the landing strip. Julian saw several animals walking on the streets close to their beastfolk tamers. He saw jaguars, lions, eagles, hounds, and wolves walking freely on the streets with no sign of aggressive behavior. They minded their own business pretty much like their tamers.

They crossed the commercial district, some residential ones, and one dedicated only to the headquarters of several guilds. Julian read the boards on some of them with a curious eye. He saw an alchemist guild beside a mechanic and the mage guild close to the tamers. There were guilds for the city cleaners, for the administrators, and even one only for midwives.

Marimar surprised Julian immensely. It wasn’t only hidden inside a crater and full of wondrous architecture, but it was as organized as any place could be. It was like looking inside the gears of a watch, not a functional town. Rayra noticed Julian’s gaze and smiled at him.

“Impressive, isn’t it? We had to work hard to rebuild after the war. We used to live a more … natural life. The humans and their inventions showed us we couldn’t deny the world's changes; we needed to embrace them and try to adapt them to our ways.”

“Which are?”

“There is a word for it here. It’s called Natrielis.” She had a distant gaze with a big grin, nostalgia washing over her. “We give back to nature everything we take. There’s a primal difference between humans and beastfolk that most of my people don’t understand. When humans see a fallen tree, they see an opportunity in it. It's a resource, and there’s nothing particularly wrong with that. When we see the same thing, we’ll also use the tree to our needs, but we’ll plant another one in its place and tend its growth.”

“Interesting.” Julian realized he hadn’t spent much of his life thinking from a similar perspective.

“Yeah, it is. We used to think the less we took from nature, the better … until the war. We broke the Natrielis several times to fight the war, convinced that we needed to change our ways,” she said with a specific dose of longing. “I guess sometimes we need to learn the hard way. But we survived, learned, and we’re here,” she said, halting.

Julian looked up at the wooden board of the place they were in. “Searcher’s Guild” adorned the top of the place’s entrance.

“Do you think there’ll be someone inside?”

“Of course. She’s always there during work hours.”

“Who?” Julian asked, but she didn’t answer. Instead, she rushed through the door and entered without knocking.

“Mom! I’m back!” Rayra shouted with the door wide open. The lamp lights entered the small building but showed almost nothing. Julian looked over Rayra’s shoulder and saw the place was similar to the mage’s guild back in Silverhold. One counter in the middle of the room with several books lying around and a few chairs sprawled here and there.

The room was kept silent for a few seconds until Julian saw movement behind the counter. It was slow at first, but as soon as the fox ears peaked above the counter, the face of the person behind the counter became evident. She was nearly identical to Rayra.

“Rayra?” she asked with widened eyes.

As Julian’s eyes adapted to the poor illumination, he could finally discern her features better. The woman, who was quite similar to his wife, was older, probably close to her sixties. She wore a simple yet elegant wool dress and held several books in her hands. Beneath her eyes, Julian saw dark pools that showed she wasn’t sleeping well, and her thin arms and waist showed she wasn’t in her best health.

Rayra rushed to the end of the room, leaped over the counter, and hugged her mother tightly. Julian heard the older woman losing her breath as her hands enveloped her daughter.

Before Julian realized it, he was already smiling broadly, looking at the scene with his heart full of compassion.

“You’re alive,” her mother was able to say. Her voice was full of emotion, her lungs needing some air, but neither of them parted the embrace.

“I am,” Rayra finally responded, moving away from her mother but holding her shoulders.

“You did it?” Rayra’s mother asked in a hushed tone as if she feared the following words to come out of her daughter’s mouth.

“I did it. She’s here with us.”

“That was why everyone was running in the street. I thought about joining them and seeing what was happening, but there was so much to do here.” Her eyes moved down to the counter, glancing through the books and back to Rayra with an almost lost gaze on her face.

“I know, Mom,” Rayra said, but Julian suspected she was lying. “You’ll have the time to get to know her.”

“Will I?” she asked, moving one hand to her heart as if not believing Rayra’s words.

“Of course. I’ll tell you everything, but first, I want to introduce someone to you.” Rayra pointed one hand towards Julian, and her mother finally noticed his presence. “He’s Julian, Mom. My husband. I wouldn’t have found Ranabi or brought her here safely without him.”

“Oh,” the woman said, trying to process the information. “A husband? I see.” Her hand was still on her heart, and her mouth ajar. For a moment, Julian was afraid the bad blood between humans and beastfolk was too deep in her heart, but she quickly turned her mouth into a grin as she moved to the end of the counter where a small passage lay.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, madam,” Julian said with a slight bow.

“You can call me Vera, sweetheart.” She approached Julian and held both of his hands, looking into his eyes. Julian could see the wrinkles getting stretched as she smiled. “What an incredible day. My daughter is back, our goddess is at home, and I also gained another son?”

“And a few daughters as well,” Julian said with an awkward smile.

Vera looked over her shoulder at Rayra, who shrugged. “Oh, by Ranabi’s fur! What a great day,” she finally said, removing any suspicion of discomfort from Julian’s heart. “Thank you for returning my baby home, Julian…. You have no idea—” she started to say, but her voice got full of emotion. If she said another word, she would cry on the spot.

“I need to thank you for raising such an incredible person. I’m thrilled to be a member of your family.”

“Oh, my goddess,” she said, raising one hand to her heart again and looking back at Rayra with her eyes full of water and an immense smile. “You chose well, baby.” She wiped her eyes off the tears that threatened to drop to her cheeks and moved back to Rayra.

“I suppose you want your reward,” Vera said, clearing her throat and moving to the back of the counter, where she started rummaging.

“Indeed,” Rayra replied, looking towards her mother’s frantic search. Julian approached slowly, waiting to see what she would show.

Then she erupted from behind the counter, holding what seemed to be a key in her hand. The object was made of thick iron and was almost the size of her hand. Rayra looked at it with wide eyes, as if contemplating a god’s shard and not a simple key.

“I suspect this isn’t your reward,” Julian said, looking at them. The words seemed to remove both women from a trance. They looked at him and smiled at the same time.

“No, silly,” Vera replied. “You’ll see it.”

Then, she moved away from the counter again and looked towards Julian. “Excuse me, dear.” She waved her hand for Julian to make space, and he did, walking back a few steps and watching her crouch.

There was nothing there on the ground. However, as soon as the key in her hand connected with the ground, it seemed to melt as it entered the floor. She moved it, and Julian saw her gritting her teeth with the strength she put into it. As if the key was almost in a strange lock, she turned it.

A green light erupted on the ground, slowly moving and forming the silhouette of a door. It was like watching drawings of vines being born, but as soon as the door was complete, the silhouette shone one last time, and in the blink of an eye, a trapdoor was on the floor.

“Are you ready?” Vera asked, looking up to watch Rayra’s eyes. She grinned in return, and that was all her mother needed. She grabbed the handle of the door and opened it.

“Come, Julian. You’ll want to see this,” Rayra said, getting close to them and preparing to jump inside the door.

Julian approached the hole in the ground and looked inside. He could see nothing there. He had had his fair share of magical portals in the last weeks, and entering a new one wasn’t exactly in his plans, but nothing in their expressions showed any fear or wariness. So when Rayra jumped inside, Julian followed close behind.

A dim green light instantly replaced the darkness of the hole. When he felt his feet touch the ground, he looked up and saw the door entrance at a distance. The fall was less than seven feet tall, but the entrance seemed to be at least fifteen feet away when he looked up.

“Make space,” Vera shouted from above, and Julian sidestepped just to see her fall the whole distance and land gracefully on the ground. “Let’s go?” she asked, already moving ahead. Rayra waited a few steps ahead, her face still adorned with a seemingly everlasting grin.

“What is this place?” Julian muttered, looking at the walls. The shape of the place reminded him of the dungeons he had entered. This one was enveloped by a green light that seemed to leak from the walls, as if Ranabi’s magic fueled the place. Julian saw carvings on the ceiling similar to those inside his mining dungeon.

The fight between Cerulex and Fenrir, the shattering of their souls, and the imprisonment of the dragonborns were all there. Yet there was more. Julian saw several dragons carved on the rock walls. They were more similar to Zilri than the drawings of Cerulex and Fenrir. They seemed to fight in the sky, some spitting fire, while others seemed to spit clouds of unknown substances.

Julian saw gigantic orcs fighting the dragons, saw the rare dwarves forming immense lines to go to battle, and even saw the drawing of a human holding what seemed to be a Soul Shard. Behind them, the shadow of Cerulex seemed to cover them.

Many more histories were told on those walls, but most of them seemed almost alien to Julian.

“Is this all our history?”

“It’s our best guess. Most of it was lost with time; maybe Ranabi will teach us more about it now that she’s returned,” Vera replied, looking at the carvings but soon changing the conversation back to Rayra. She had probably seen those carvings numerous times already, but for Julian, they looked impressive. When all this ends, I’ll ask Ranabi about this … or Zilri, he thought as the corridor seemed to end.

“We’re here,” Rayra said, looking back at Julian, who kept going to the end of the line. “Come close, babe.”

Julian approached her and held her outstretched hand.

“What is this place?” he asked, looking at the wall at the end of the corridor.

“It’s where our searchers are assigned and where they rest after their mission is complete,” Vera replied with a gentle smile as she put her key inside the invisible lock again. Another door appeared, and she opened it slowly. “You deserve it, daughter.”

The green light extended through the entire room behind the door. The place was immense and circular. A crest waited in the middle of the room, shining with emeralds all over its lid. Facing the crest, a statue of a fox beastfolk stood tall with two hands outstretched towards the crest. The rocky piece of art looked like a woman, similar to Rayra and her mother. Besides that statue, several others rounded the room.

These were of different species. Julian saw cows, crows, cats, wolves, and bulls amidst the many beastfolk statues, all looking solemnly at the center of the room.

“This is a tomb for the fallen searchers,” Julian muttered as the place slowly became more eerie.

“Finding our goddess is a great honor, but also a great sacrifice. It’s a toll all of us carry in our hearts. Here, our heroes rest beside our greatest warrior.” Vera moved past the crest and towards the fox statue, looking at the object in the middle of the room. “Nothing more fitting than a kitsune like Vermax to earn her treasure.”

Julian felt the sweat on Rayra’s hand and saw her other one shaking like a leaf.

“You got this,” he said reassuringly as she moved towards the crest. Julian let her hand go as she looked into his eyes and smiled one last time. Vera stood on the crest's other side and watched Rayra’s hands slowly travel through it before finding the lock and opening it.

Julian’s curiosity was about to kill him, but he let her have her moment. She looked inside the object for a few excruciating moments until she removed something. She held it with one hand, moving it with great care above her head.

In her hands, an immense bow rested. The thing was almost the same size as Rayra herself and seemed to be made out of the connection between two antlers. However, the bow had no semblance of being made out of bone; instead, it shone a bright yellow. When she moved it, Julian could see the other side of it as if the weapon wasn’t really there. The bowstring was invisible, but when Rayra lowered it and grabbed the cord, an arrow appeared there, with the same constitution as the bow.

She pulled the string close to her mouth; her left eye closed, pointing towards a place between two statues, but she didn’t fire the arrow. When she relaxed the string, the arrow disappeared. She moved the bow to her back like she used to carry her regular one, but the weapon also disappeared as soon as the invisible string crossed her back.

“That’s amazing,” Julian whispered, looking at his wife, who turned towards him with an immense grin.

“Isn’t it?” she said, rushing towards Julian and hugging him. She kissed him repeatedly, not able to hide her joy.

“There’s more,” Vera said from behind the crest, looking towards them. “The legend says that when Cerulex defeated Fenrir, Vermax was the one who found the weapon capable of hurting the god. An Elder weapon, older than the gods themselves.”

Rayra returned to the crest, and Julian followed close behind this time. They both leaned to look inside the object and right at the corner of it, almost hidden by the shadows of its walls, they saw a small dagger.

Julian’s wife grabbed it and raised it towards the light. The object seemed made of bone, but instead of the deteriorated state bones tended to assume with time, this one looked pristine and seemed to have its own light.

The object had a small cylindrical pommel that extended to turn into a deadly sharp bone resembling a knife. It was curved, with almost one foot from tip to end. The object could be the masterpiece of a great artisan, but when Julian looked at it, he couldn’t see any marks of work. It was as if the knife was indeed the complete bone of a creature, which seemed almost ludicrous to think about. Still, Julian had not long ago seen creatures in unholy shapes on the Rust Orc Island. If those creatures existed, the owner of this bone could also exist.

Close to it, there was a small sheath to protect it. Rayra grabbed it, put the strange knife inside it, and handed it to Julian with both hands.

“We know that if someone is going to kill Fenrir, it will be you,” she said with a grave tone, looking into his eyes.

“It’s your reward.”

“I choose to share it with you.”

“Are you sure?”

She nodded and stretched her hands further, signaling Julian to grab the object. He caught it with a gentle touch and put it on his belt. She kissed him again and looked at her mother as if saying they were ready to go.

“What was that thing about killing Fenrir? The god was shattered millennia ago,” Vera said.

Both Julian and Rayra smiled awkwardly before the former started, “About that … there’s a lot we need to explain to you.”

Chapter Fifteen

Rayra’s mother needed time to process all the information they had thrown at her. By the time night arrived and they were eating around the table together, she had replaced her shocked expression with one of utter joy.

Julian sat beside Rayra, and on her other side, her whole family ate and drank as they smiled and told stories about Rayra’s childhood. Several times, Julian thought they would cry on the spot, but they held back the tears and kept the mood around the table light and fun.

Anasthasia, Thalia, and Liz were also enjoying the moment, their mouths full of the delicious meal prepared for them. Bread, soups, and juices of all flavors were plentiful and distributed across the table. Julian tried some grains he had never eaten before and even a dish that Rayra told him needed to cook for seven days straight before it was ready, or it would be poisonous.

He ate that one with wariness, but she assured him it was safe. The dish was quite popular in Marimar. A good part of the cooking guild was responsible for making it every day, so many of the houses in Marimar could eat it when they wanted. The dish was made of herbs, beans, and meat Julian didn’t recognize. The flavor was strong and hit hard. It was salty and a little sweet at the end. When he swallowed it whole, he felt his tongue numb.

“Rayra, I think I’m poisoned,” he said, feeling the words not forming quite well as his tongue seemed to get heavier inside his mouth.

The beastfolk around the table laughed hard, and Julian’s heart calmed a little.

“It’s intentional, babe. The herbs numb your tongue. Just enjoy it.”

Julian looked at her briefly, wondering how anyone could find this enjoyable. However, as soon as he ate the second and third spoonfuls, he started appreciating that he couldn’t feel his mouth very well. When he drank a gulp of wine, it slid through his throat, refreshing everything and sending a shiver down his spine. The mixture of flavors and sensations brought something entirely new to Julian.

“Thish ish good,” Thalia said, her tongue glued to her mouth, the words forming funnily.

“Perfecsh,” Liz replied, her voice slurred as Thalia’s.

“I could never eash thish back at the capital,” Anasthasia said, her words hard to understand.

Everyone laughed once more, looking at each other and enjoying the moment. In those minutes that Julian spent with his newfound family, he almost forgot about the arduous task he still had to accomplish back in the capital.

Marimar seemed like a dream come true, a place of hard work but also good leisure where everyone seemed to live in harmony he wasn’t familiar with. He was about to throw them into the chaos of fighting a mad god.

He’ll come for them if they don’t help, Julian thought to himself as his smile slowly faded. He felt the bone knife getting heavy on his belt as he adjusted himself at the table. Anasthasia, who sat at Julian’s other side, seemed to sense his discomfort and held his hand firmly.

“The weight is getting heavier, isn’t it?” she asked with a sad look and a gentle smile.

“For you, too, right?” Julian asked as he caressed her hand, which was intertwined with his. She nodded in agreement and then looked around the table before returning her gaze to him.

“But if I’ve learned something from you, we can always find a way to make things right.”

He felt his other hand being caressed and saw Rayra smiling at him. On the other side of the table, Thalia and Liz repeated the gesture and nodded at him. He cleared his throat and looked at Jito and Vera in the middle of the table.

“The meal was fantastic, and the company was even better, but I’m afraid we need to sleep. We’ll travel back to the capital tomorrow, and we don’t want to be tired when we do that.”

“You’re right, Julian,” Vera said, getting up and nodding toward her husband. “I’ll show them their room. We can speak more tomorrow.”

“Sleep well, kids,” Jito said, standing and saying his goodbyes as they all started rising. “I’m just sad Ranabi didn’t appear for dinner. Vera wanted to meet her.”

“She’ll be here tomorrow. I promise you’ll get to know each other,” Julian said, looking at his mother-in-law. She smiled with a certain embarrassment, as a boy would be at the prospect of meeting a war hero. Julian did not comment to avoid further embarrassing her and let her lead the way.

Their room was simple, yet the bed was big enough to fit all of them. For all Rayra had said, harems were common in Marimar, but her family had never found other partners, making the room with the big bed never used. Beastfolk were just that practical; they preferred to sleep in a bed made just for two rather than in a bigger one if there was no need for it.

As Julian removed his boots and jumped on the bed, his wives quickly followed, almost eager to dispute who would sleep closer to him. Julian knew very well that their positions would change during the night, so in the end, it was all just fun and giggles.

“I got here first,” Anasthasia said almost pleadingly as she embraced his left side.

“You’re the new girl!” Thalia complained as she lay beside Anasthasia.

“You’re new as well,” Liz replied, snuggling on Julian’s right side. Rayra embraced her with a caring hug as they accommodated on the bed. Those two weren’t in the mood to fight for positions. Julian even suspected they didn’t care, as long as the three of them were close. He liked it just like that.

“I wonder where Zilri is,” Liz muttered, her eyes almost closing.

“Maybe we were a little too hard on her,” Anasthasia said, kissing Julian’s chest as she also snuggled around his side.

“Maybe,” Julian replied, but regretted it instantly.

“I changed my mind,” Liz said in a husky, yet comical way. “We were too soft on her.”

“I agree,” the others replied in unison and chuckled as sleep slowly took them down.

“Zilri, are you there?” Julian asked mentally.

“Anything wrong?” Her voice came full of worry.

“No, the girls were asking if you are fine. We missed you at dinner.”

“They did? That’s … surprising. I didn’t think a giant dragon’s sight would be good for your dinner. Besides, I don’t have many places that fit me in this form.”

“I see. So you’re good? Can I do something to make you feel better?”

“You just did. Rest well, my mate.”

“You too, Zilri. Good night.”

Julian smiled but said nothing, yawning and grinning as he felt his eyelids getting heavier.

It was midmorning when the first of the beastfolk started to enter the portal. Thalia opened one directly to the Flying Pearl, and the leaders of the beastfolk’s guilds began to gather their members to enter first. They sent the tamers and their animals to the front, then the mages, the regular warriors, the cooks, the blacksmiths, and everyone else they thought was needed during a war effort.

Anasthasia went to the front with Thalia as her guard, and Julian stayed behind with his remaining wives to help organize the waves of travelers. There was both fear and excitement in the air. No one there was eager to fight a war against Fenrir and the orcs, but they were all eager to travel to another country. Only a few of the beastfolk had ventured outside their magical barriers, and many magical stories had been told for generations about the wonders they would find outside.

Ranabi encouraged them as they entered the portal, telling them she would be with them soon to help with the war effort and familiarize them with the town.

Julian drank water in one corner of the landing strip, close to a resting Zilri, who had slept on the spot.

“Are you alright?” Julian asked the dragon, who opened her eyes slowly, as if disinterested.

I’m fine, she said inside his mind.

“Why weren’t you with us last night? You said it would be difficult to join us as a dragon, but you could have transformed into your human form. We ate and drank together, and it would have been nice for you to be there. Even Liz asked for you.”

She did? The dragon asked in a tone of surprise that was quickly replaced by her seemingly faked indifference. Turning into my humanoid form is painless, but turning back into this one is excruciating. I prefer to stay this way if I must transform soon.

“I don’t think you’ll need to be a dragon in the next few hours. If you want to be around, you must make an effort. My wives will only accept you if you give them reasons.”

I’m not the best with human emotions, but that I understand, Julian, she said almost condescendingly. That’s not the problem.

“What is it then?”

I’m afraid we’ll have to fight sooner rather than later, she said ominously as she looked deep into his eyes.

“Continue,” Julian said, putting one hand on her face and returning her gaze.

I wasn’t aware of all of their movements, but as soon as Fenrir discovered you’ve taken the Soul Shard, the troops started to be mobilized faster. He sent me to assert a part of his vengeance, but I’m afraid he’ll attack soon now that he doesn’t have the option to wait and gather more power through his Shards.

Julian listened to everything with attention, trying to see if there was any clue that she was mistaken. However, nothing in her words or mannerisms told him that. She could be wrong, but she believed in every word she said.

“If that’s really the case, I’m glad we found you.”

I’m glad as well, she replied, and Julian wished she was in her human form now so he could see her smile. I just want to ask you one thing.

“Go ahead.”

When we march to defeat him, I want you to be on my back while I burn all of them.

“Fair enough,” Julian said with a smile as he patted her hot scales. “I’ll make sure this happens.”

Thank you. She finally rose, opening her wings and showing all her might to the people still on the landing strip. Zilri, when in her dragon form, was probably the most magnificent creature Julian had ever seen. He saw the same admiration in the beastfolk’s eyes as they prepared to enter the portal.

Zilri flew into the skies, circling the crowd as she prepared to enter a second portal Thalia had made for her. Liz and Rayra approached Julian, and thankfully, they had no gripes about the dragon lady.

“Anything we should know?” Rayra asked.

“There’s a good chance we’ll have to fight before the wedding.”

“How soon?”

“Tomorrow or the day after. Hell, it can even be today if they want to strike. By now, they probably know we are moving troops around the realm. It has been two days since they attacked us. With luck, the news of our success hasn’t reached Fenrir yet, but I wouldn’t count on that.”

“Great,” Liz said, eliciting both Julian and Rayra's raised eyebrows. “I mean, I want to end this as fast as possible while we can still fight.”

She moved one hand to her belly and caressed it slowly. With the kids inside their wombs still tiny, sometimes they forgot about that, so immersed were they in defeating Fenrir once and for all.

“Promise me, you two, that you’ll not put yourselves in more danger than needed. If something happens to me, you two are carrying the future of the Lionheart family,” Julian said, pulling them gently by the hands.

They seemed to want to protest, but when their eyes met, both girls looked down.

“We promise,” they said in unison, hugging Julian tightly.

“Give me the Soul Shards, Rayra. I’ll consume them now.”

“All fifty?”

“Yes. I’ll need every inch of power I can get.”

“Okay,” she said reluctantly, but started taking the Soul Shards from her magic satchel.

“Liz, make sure everyone traveling is inside the portal and moving towards the capital. Wait for me and Rayra; we’ll be right behind you.”

His wife nodded and went towards the portal, helping organize the other small groups of beastfolk gathering to jump.

“Right, here we go,” he said, and he swallowed the first shard. The sensation was as incredible as the other times. He ate one by one, feeling the mana fill his body. After the tenth shard, he started to think he couldn’t take it anymore, his eyes almost burning with the intense light as the mist escaped his body. He endured, and when he consumed the twentieth shard, he felt his mana core expanding like a balloon.

The energy slowly adjusted inside his body, turning and swirling as his mana core expanded, and then he felt peace washing over his body. No more burning sensation and no more mana leaking from him. His vision became clear, and he could see Rayra stretching another shard for him to consume. When he reached the fiftieth one, he was starting to feel the side effects from before, but in a less invasive way.

“How do I look?” he asked, feeling the words funnily escaping his mouth, his voice graver than he remembered.

“See for yourself,” she replied, removing a mirror inside her satchel and showing it to him. His eyes shone a stark blue as if the two globes had become soul shards themselves. His clothes seemed to want to rustle as if a force was pulling them to the sky, as well as his hair, which flapped against an invisible wind. It was as if his magical aura was so strong at that moment that it was being manifested physically for everyone to see.

“Wow,” he replied, noticing his voice was indeed imbued with mana power. He kept looking at the mirror, seeing the aura slowly fading and making him return to his former form.

“Do you feel something different?” Rayra asked. “That didn’t happen to me when I became an intermediate mage.”

“Besides the flying hair and blue aura around me?” he joked, returning the mirror to her. “I definitely feel something different, but I don’t know what it is.”

“You’ll have to test your power, I guess. Nothing better to test your powers than fighting a god’s army, right?”

“I guess so,” he replied with a smile as he prepared to move. Then he remembered one thing. His grimoire had insisted on him using the Soul Shards and had mentioned it was changing her. “Wait, I want to test something.”

Rayra halted, and Julian snapped his fingers to summon his grimoire. As always, the book appeared in thin air, but before Julian could open it, it exploded before his eyes. Rayra stepped back, watching the book slowly burn into a million pieces and then fall to the ground.

“That wasn’t what I was expecting,” she finally said, looking at Julian with a shocked expression.

“Can’t you see her?!” he asked, pointing to where the book had been a second ago.

“No, who?”

“By the Last!” he exclaimed, moving his hand towards the girl’s face right in front of him. The spirit of his grimoire, the one that saved his life inside the mirror realm, was materialized before his eyes. “Her! The spirit from my grimoire,” Julian said, but Rayra only raised her eyebrows.

“Julian, are you alright?” she asked, moving slowly towards Julian—totally oblivious to the gorgeous, almost translucent blonde beside him.

“Hi, Julian,” the grimoire said, and in that moment, Rayra stepped back in shock.

“Wow!” she exclaimed, defensively raising both hands. “I heard her!”

“Hi, Rayra. It’s so nice to meet you.” The grimoire’s voice was packed with emotion, and Julian could easily understand that. She had demonstrated to him how hard it was to live without human connections. Talking to Julian had changed her, and being able to socialize with more people clearly affected her deeply.

“I didn’t know you were … a person,” Rayra said.

“I’m not sure exactly what I am,” she replied with a gentle smile as she turned her attention to Julian. “I don’t have a lot of time, Julian. It’s hard to keep this form, but I believe I can help you in battle from now on. If I can’t show myself, I’ll whisper in your ear.”

“Okay,” Julian said, moving one hand to touch the grimoire’s. He could actually feel her touch on his skin. The arcane energy flickering on her hand shocked Julian’s core and back to hers. “You’re indeed here.”

She smiled as if agreeing and looked into Julian’s eyes. “Be careful, Julian. I feel this fight will be very taxing on you. I’m really close to being able to cross to this world. I’m so close to you, to all of you.” She outstretched one hand and touched Julian’s face. He saw one tear falling from her eyes. It was made of mana. Julian’s heart panged with the realization that she was, in a way, imprisoned with him.

She wasn’t simply a grimoire that helped him. She was a living being with desires and emotions.

“What can I do to bring you here?”

“If you destroy Fenrir, maybe you’ll be able to even out the magical balance of the world. I’m already more here than in the spiritual realm,” she said as her body faded. “Goodbye, Julian.” She kissed him on the cheek and then slowly disappeared.

“Even spirits are falling in love with you now?” Rayra asked, her hands reaching for her waist as she postured herself. She feigned anger, but Julian knew her better than that.

He smiled at her and shrugged. “What can I do? I’m just too incredible, I guess.”

“Maybe,” she said, moving back to his side and gripping his arm. “You’ll need to explain it to the other girls.”

“I know. This is not something I planned, you know. When Strazz almost killed me, it was her who kept me alive until you and Liz healed me. I owe her my life and am very fond of her.”

Rayra looked at him keenly, sighed, and kept moving. “I guess I knew what I was stepping into when I decided to be around the kindest, most handsome, and gentlest man in the whole world.”

“You’re so talkative today and complimentary.”

“I’m always like this.”

“No, you’re not,” Julian said, chuckling. “You’re more: ‘Uh-uh, don’t get anywhere near my family, or I’ll gut you,’ or ‘I’m just too serious and badass to say anything.’” He made a feeble imitation of her voice, and when she punched his shoulder with force, he couldn’t blame her.

“No, I’m not!” she complained as he chuckled, approaching the portal.

“What’s the joke?” Liz asked, turning her back from the portal as Zilri lowered her flight to enter the portal. With the elder dragon inside it, only the three of them were missing from the jump.

“Julian has a new girlfriend,” Rayra said, patting Julian’s shoulders and moving to the portal, leaving Julian to explain to a very shocked Liz what she had just said. “And she doesn’t even actually physically exist!” Rayra completed, already inside the portal as Julian approached Liz with two raised and apologetic hands.

Chapter Sixteen

The walk along the bricked road inside the purple realm was long and uneventful. It was hard to keep track of the hours inside that place, but he assumed they had been inside it for at least two hours. The first hour was all about telling Rayra and Liz the nuances of his meetings with the spirit inside his grimoire.

When he finished the story, there was no animosity in the air. On the contrary, Liz started to worry about her own grimoire. The book wasn’t the most pleasant personality, constantly threatening Liz with passive-aggressive behavior. Still, Liz worried it might be another spirit trapped in her book. She now wanted to meet Julian’s grimoire and ask what she could do to free the spirit from the book.

Julian smiled as her compassion filled her face with worry, feeling grateful for choosing his companions so well.

“We’ll see what we can do,” Julian replied, hugging her by the shoulders as they moved to the end of the group.

Above them, Zilri flew slowly, flapping her wings at long intervals. Sometimes Julian feared she would fall over them, but she kept there in the sky, making him suspect she wasn’t up there only by flapping her wings but also using some kind of magic like he could use.

See anything? Julian asked inside his mind, using the connection he had established with Zilri.

All safe, she replied, her eyes searching the clouds.

Good.

Not actually, she replied, flying higher into the sky to check amidst the clouds. I’d suspect he would send attackers here if his goal was a strategic and slow advance. No one being here probably confirms what we feared.

Julian didn’t reply. Instead, he kept looking forward, waiting for the other end of the portal to appear.

It didn’t take much longer for the bright sky of Alinera to appear in the distance. The portal was big enough for Zilri to pass through it, as well as all the other groups that moved slowly along the bricked road.

They were arriving at Flying Pearl, a decision Julian had endorsed. The leaders of Alinera’s army and any other allies had already arrived. Besides that, the castle stood in the middle of the town, making it easy to command the newcomers to defend different parts of the city if needed.

Julian’s heart raced inside his chest at the prospect of the war being so close. However, he wasn’t afraid of it. Like Liz, he wanted this to end as quickly as possible, and like Zilri, he wanted to burn every single one of them before they could spread their evilness throughout the world.

When it was their time to cross the portal, most of the beastfolk were already being ordered by some of the dukes. Anasthasia oversaw everything with a reassuring smile and a few words here and there. The beastfolk earned their glasses to protect them from the light, but most of them refused. Their animal eyes were already accustomed to both low and high amounts of light.

Thalia approached Julian with fast steps, dodging several groups of beastfolk and reaching him with worry in her eyes.

“They’re mobilizing for the attack. The warships are already on the sea.”

“How much time until they reach the coast?”

“Four hours, maybe six.”

“And the denizens, were they evacuated?”

“Most of them, yes. The rest are still moving to the south, with a caravan escorting them.”

“Great. Anyone else arrived beside the beastfolk?”

In that moment, Thalia’s face became grim, and she shook her head negatively. At that moment, Anasthasia, who was just approaching, chimed in.

“Our emissaries are still running to let the other kingdoms know the danger that is coming. The news of the marriage was effective, though. Most of the men of Alinera are already here, except the ones from far away, like from Silverhold⁠—”

“That’s not going to be a problem. Thalia, go there and bring my men here.”

“I’m sorry, Julian, but I don’t think that’s going to make a huge difference. I have a different plan.” Anasthasia chimed in, looking at Thalia with an apology stamped on her eyes, her face ever so slightly turning to the side.

“What?” the blue-haired girl asked.

“You’ll not like this, but I want you to go and speak with your mother.

“No! They’ll flay me alive.”

“No, they won’t. I’ve already written a letter for you to deliver. You’re the only person who can convince them to come.”

“What are you talking about?” Julian asked, his eyebrows raised and curiosity setting in.

“She wants me to try and bring the elven army to our side.”

“That would be great!” Julian shouted, looking at the girl with wide eyes. “Can you do that?” Upon hearing his plea, Thalia lowered her shoulders but didn’t falter.

“I can’t, Julian. It’s been ages since I saw my mother, and the elves despise my father. There’s a good chance of them blaming me for my mother’s mistakes.”

“Her mother is an important member of the elven council, Julian,” Anasthasia said, putting one hand on Thalia’s shoulder. “If anything can convince them to come, it’s Thalia and her mother.”

“When were you planning on telling us about this?” Julian asked.

“I’m sorry,” Thalia replied, her eyes looking at the ground. “I was trying to put all that behind me. The twin snakes, my stupid father, and all the elven culture, if that was possible. I guess I can’t escape from everything.”

“So, your father isn’t an elf?” Rayra asked. “I thought he was one since all the Twin Snakes we saw are elves.”

“He’s not. He’s just very good with words. He’s probably the first human ever to command elves in anything. That’s why I don’t believe my mother’s people will accept anything I say.”

“Still, you need to try.”

“I don’t know the exact place to open a portal there.”

“But you know somewhere close?”

“Kinda.”

“Go with her, Rayra. You’ll speak on behalf of the beastfolk while Thalia will speak on behalf of the princess and the whole Alinera. Bring them here.”

Thalia looked at him with confusion; she clearly wanted to deny and run away like she always did. But she had changed. She sighed, looked into Julian’s eyes, and said,

“Okay.” She then grabbed her sword, opened a portal, and waved for Rayra. “Let’s go, sis, before I regret this even more.”

They disappeared inside the portal with only a kiss in the air as goodbye, but Julian wasn’t bothered at all. They didn’t have time to waste.

Chapter Seventeen

Julian stood tall in one of the side streets of the Flying Pearl. He looked directly toward the sky on the horizon. It was way past noon, and the ships were only a few hours away from them. With mana improving his vision, he suspected he saw some of the ships already crossing the horizon.

The best course would be to attack the ships while they were on the sea, but Julian knew they were probably expecting this. Fighting enemies both in the sky and in the sea would be impossible for him and Zilri, and he trusted the mages below to deal with the ships when it was the time.

A good portion of the army was already down below, organized in lines along the city’s coast. Most of the battlemages the army had to spare were there, as well as many of the beastfolk archers. The plan was to use their magic and projectiles to slow the sea advance as much as possible, fall back, and deal with the orc soldiers as they descended from the ships that survived the magical attacks.

Liz was down there coordinating the mages, making Julian’s heart pang again inside his chest. Be safe, my love, Julian thought, looking down at the lines on the shore, trying to catch a glimpse of her but failing in the process.

Behind Julian, distributed on the streets of the Flying Pearl, were all the beastfolk who could turn into flying animals, as well as those who tamed the giant eagles they had seen back in Marimar. Their army would probably be outnumbered two to one in the sky and on the ground. However, they had something Fenrir’s forces didn’t: all the soldiers' weapons shone a bright blue that came from Julian’s magical core. He was now wearing Ranabi’s root armor, which slowly but surely regenerated all of his mana as he waited for the attackers to come.

“Look,” Anasthasia pointed to the horizon as she approached Julian’s side. Above them, nested in one of the castle's towers, Julian heard Zilri moving her head up and following Anasthasia's outstretched hand as well.

They’re coming, she said inside his mind.

He didn’t need her words to see the small dots surging on the horizon, but he appreciated the confirmation. From this distance, it looked as if the creatures were capable of turning the blue sky into a myriad of strange colors, reflecting both the scales and plumage of the dragonborn as well as the small dragons carrying transformed orcs on their backs.

Some of the more peculiar dragons he had seen in the mirror realm were probably not joining this fight. Not all of them could fly, and fewer could swim for so long. However, Julian didn’t doubt Fenrir had also brought other sea serpents to his side.

Focus on your enemy, Julian thought, looking at the sky once more. The dots started to increase both in size and in quantity. They were so many and yet felt so little to Julian. He was just an adept mage, but he felt stronger than any mage he had known so far. That was the power of Arcane Magic, one that could only be overcome by Fenrir’s.

Where are you? Julian thought, trying to distinguish the bright red light the god always emitted when he was around. He was nowhere to be seen. Coward, Julian thought again, wondering if there was still a part of Strazz inside that husk. The old man had shown to be a great coward in the past, attacking Julian when he wasn’t looking, spying, and conspiring against his estate.

Him being the receptacle of Fenrir seemed fitting enough, and ending both of them today would be a great pleasure.

“He is not coming,” Julian said out loud. Zilri heard the words as her eyes searched the skies.

She grunted in a low tone for a few seconds, as if sniffing the air. He’s on his way. I can take you to him. She flapped her wings, getting up and moving. Her claws destroyed a good portion of Anasthasia’s tower ceiling, but she didn’t seem to care.

“Not now. Let’s ensure the safety of our troops. Stay sharp, though.”

The dragon said nothing. Instead, she decided to fly around the Flying Pearl, studying the enemy in the distance.

“It doesn’t feel right for me to be here just watching,” Anasthasia said, holding Julian’s gauntleted hand.

“The people here need a leader, and she needs to be seen. You must bestow upon them the courage, and besides that … the enemy will come. We won’t be able to stop them all.”

“And we’ll kill all the bastards,” she said with determination.

“Exactly. Now do the same thing, but with the others who are shaking with fear in the middle of the street.”

“Good luck, Julian,” she said, rising to the tip of her toes and kissing his lips.

“I’ll need some luck. I can’t die before I marry you.” Julian said, staring into her eyes.

“Are you sure?” she asked, her cheeks burning red. “There’s no need now that the war has already arrived.”

“Do you want to be a member of my family?” he asked firmly.

“More than anything,” she replied, letting her hands surround his neck.

“Good, then kiss your king,” he commanded, holding her neck with one hand as she moved to kiss him passionately.

When she parted from the sweet kiss, she whispered, “My king.”

“My queen,” he replied as she moved away from him, grinned, and ran to help the soldiers on the Flying Pearl.

He sighed profoundly, looking at the horizon once again.

Are you ready? Julian asked inside his mind as Zilri stopped before him.

Always, she replied. He jumped, falling directly onto her neck, her scales surrounding his legs and protecting him from falling. He checked all his gear. The gauntlet on his right hand was well fitted, the bracelet on the left felt perfect behind the armor, and both his new knife and his sword were well fixed in their sheaths.

“Get me to the riders,” he commanded, and she promptly obeyed, flying him to the middle of the Flying Pearl where hundreds of giant eagles, eagle riders, and transformed beastfolk waited.

“The battle is near, comrades!” Julian shouted, looking at them intently. Julian could see the wariness in their eyes as they eagerly waited for his words. “They will strike, and they will strike hard. But we’ll strike harder! They will try to kill you and everyone you love, but we’ll face them and show them we’re not easy targets. They don’t know it yet, but they are flying to their own doom!”

He shouted louder and heard several bird snarls and human chants of “Ay!”

“Watch as I fly ahead and be ready to strike anyone who escapes mine and Zilri’s grasp. Your work is to be an auxiliary line of defense before the attackers can reach our foot soldiers.”

The people nodded positively, understanding the plan that had already been passed to them before.

Julian instructed Zilri to fly and stop between the people on the Flying Pearl and the soldiers on the shore. The mana flowing through his body, his position, and the utter silence of the city helped to make his words reach everyone.

“This is not a common war. This isn’t a border conflict, a war for resources, or a dispute over trading grounds. The enemy has no interest in claiming this land, making hostages, or conquering anything. Their only goal is to annihilate us. Even those who their master tricked know what they’re doing is evil. Ask our Rust Orc friends here, and you’ll see.” Julian pointed to the Rust Orcs, who raised their weapons high in the sky close to the foot soldiers on the Flying Pearl. They were tasked with the protection of the princess, Ubu right at her side, ready to bless her with one of his blood spells. “They chose to do right; the ones flying and sailing here now chose evil. They chose violence, and we’ll give it to them all!”

The people on the streets screamed loud enough for Julian’s ears to ring, but he loved the adrenaline rush from giving a speech to a crowd like that. He raised his sword, pointed at the skies, and screamed one last time. “No mercy!”

The people from below echoed his words in a powerful and loud chant.

“No mercy! No mercy! No mercy!” It was so loud that it didn’t take long for the people on the shore to start chanting the same words. Suddenly, the whole town was engulfed in battle lust, filled with the desire to protect their lives from the invaders. In retrospect, that was all Julian had been doing for the last few weeks—fighting those who wanted to violently take what was his by proper and hard work.

Today, he would put an end to that.

With those thoughts in mind, he sheathed his sword and caressed Zilri on the neck.

Great speech, she said inside his mind, no trace of irony in her voice. I never liked Cerulex, but seeing you now, I understand why everyone loved him.

“And why was that?”

He was a fitting creature. Like you. Well molded to each situation. You’re the caring lover to your wives and the raging storm to your enemies. The words made Julian’s hair stand on end and a smile form on his lips. It wasn’t every day an elder god complimented someone. I wonder how our babies will be. She completed with a musing tone, and Julian chuckled.

“You only think about that?”

Of course not, she replied as they flew toward the beasts on the horizon. The dragons became more prominent by the second. I’m also thinking about burning the enemy who enslaved me for generations.

“Great, let’s focus on that.” Julian smiled as she flapped her wings more violently toward the dragonkin ahead. “Let’s make them taste their own poison,” Julian said as Zilri gathered fire in her throat.

Chapter Eighteen

Zilri’s fire distorted the air and made it flicker with the violence of its flames. As soon as she released the wall of fire, Julian watched it travel slowly before gaining speed as she spat more and more flames into it.

Julian couldn’t see the faces of the dragons or their riders, but he would bet they were shocked when the heat reached their scales, plumes, and clothes. The monsters disappeared on the horizon, covered by the flames. Julian knew they would fall back to avoid the fire or even go up or down into the skies. However, he heard at least a dozen of them shrieking and crying as the fire burned them to the bone.

As if the screams were an invitation to more flames, Julian grabbed Zilri’s scales, inciting her to move ahead. She promptly did, never stopping flapping her wings as she moved forward, the fire expanding before her and hitting both dragons and their riders.

Filthy creatures! she shouted inside his head. You’re a disgrace to my kin. Her voice was full of resentment and anger. All the years she had to live close to them, the creatures she considered a mere mimic of the power of the elder dragons, had been too heavy for her.

With every orc and dragon that plummeted to the sea like flies after a strike, others appeared, flying to the skies or the sea, trying to avoid her flames.

“Back!” Julian shouted, noticing the creatures mounting up in the corner of his vision. “They’re preparing a counterattack.” The elder dragon, too absorbed in her vengeance, didn’t notice the dragons soaring above her flames, preparing to strike with anger and power.

Julian wasn’t sure how much they could hurt her, but it would be stupid to wait and see if they had some weapon up their sleeve.

“Fall back!” Julian repeated, and this time, Zilri listened, flapping her wings in a huge arc that propelled her backward, just as a myriad of dragonriders tried to strike her with their axes and swords.

She kept flying back, blasting those in front of her with fire, as they heard the steaming sound of burning flesh falling into the water. The dragonriders continued giving pursuit. Or were they trying to reach the Flying Pearl? It didn’t matter in the end. They kept flying back until he felt the distance was safe enough for a strike.

He gathered the mana in his left hand and released it toward one of the dragons. They were all small, close to seven feet tall from tail to snout, and a similar distance from one wing to the other. That was why, when Julian made the most enormous blast he had ever done, three of them were hit simultaneously, and several more were caught in the blue flames that sprawled from the first explosion.

A good part of the monsters became little pieces plummeting toward the sea while the others burned, unable to extinguish the arcane flames.

“Down! Down!” He heard some orcs crying, trying to make the dragons reach the sea before they were also burned. They were so desperate to extinguish the flames that they didn’t calculate the impact of their fall. Dragons and orcs went silent as they crashed against the water floor below.

The other monsters in the sky halted, looking at the giant elder dragon with desperate expressions. If that was all they had to offer, Julian was sure they would end before the ships arrived at the shore, and then he would burn them to the ground.

“They’re waiting for something,” Julian whispered. Should we also wait? he thought, looking at the enemies in the distance. He had plenty of mana still, and his armor was slowly making it regenerate. He could wait and see, but that would mean he would lose the momentum of the fear in the enemy’s eyes.

“Let’s go,” he muttered, patting Zilri’s hot scales as she advanced again. “Fireballs this time; I don’t want our vision blocked.”

She grunted, a little annoyed. She had quite enjoyed seeing her enemies being hit by the flame wall. They set off to the side, surrounding the wall of enemies as she started raining down the fireballs. The dragons tried to dodge, flying away, but Julian aimed those small blasts that killed the dragons and the riders instantly or by the fall.

“They’re sitting ducks in this position,” he muttered, but he wasn’t complaining. The enemies kept dying as they kept firing arcane and fire magic at them. One by one, they populated the sea below.

Julian heard wings behind him and noticed someone approaching. He looked over his shoulder and realized it was the eagle riders and the giant eagles coming to their position.

“What in the Last are you doing here? Go hold your positions!”

“We thought⁠—”

“You thought nothing! Go back!” Julian shouted, but it was already too late.

Another set of figures emerged from the clouds behind the wall of dragons in the sky. They were similar to the dragons, some bigger and others more minor, but all looked way more ill-intended than the beasts below them. Intelligence and murder glimmered in the dragonborns' eyes as they flew fast towards Julian.

Zilri shot her wall of flames toward the dragonborns up into the sky. They descended nonetheless, while in the distance, the other beasts flew out of the clouds fast towards Julian’s allies.

Julian made several blasts and shot them repeatedly, but Zilri’s wall of flames made it impossible to see if he struck.

“Stop!” Julian shouted to the elder dragon, who didn’t seem to understand the gravity of the situation. “It will not be enough⁠—”

The first dragonborn hit Zilri in the face. Julian unsheathed his sword and raised his hand to strike as the creature pierced its claws into her scales. Before he could attack, another crashed against Zilri’s left wing, making her lose balance, and Julian’s strike missed by inches, almost severing some of Zilri’s scales.

Shit, he thought, preparing to strike again with his sword, but afraid of hurting the elder dragon in the process. Then came the rest of the dragonborns. They exited the flame wall with mad grins and gritted teeth, their claws grabbing anywhere they could as they slowly but surely crowded Zilri, trying to throw her into the sea.

Julian struck one dragonborn on the head, piercing its skull in a single movement and kicking it to the sea. Another one was on her neck, and he struck this one as well, severing its hand and a part of Zilri’s scales in the process. She cried in pain.

“Sorry!” he shouted, raising and preparing to move towards her right wing. There, four dragonborns tried to bite her. Their efforts brought some success after a while. Julian could see her crimson blood painting the once-pristine scales. “Get the fuck away!” Julian screamed, releasing himself from her grip and flying towards them.

Julian crashed against one dragonborn, and the impact sent the monster to the sea below. He grabbed the scale the monster was holding and, with his other hand, swung his sword towards two other dragonborns, but they were just too far.

He extended the length of his sword as far as he could and watched as it pierced both dragonborns in the chest and waist. Julian retrieved his sword as he watched them plummet down. The last one was hit by a small blast right in the forehead as it tried to make a new bite on her wing.

Julian set off, determined to kill the other dragonborns on her left wing. Zilri kept flying in strange patterns, flying closer to the sea than the sky. Julian looked over his shoulder, wanting to see if there was any other monster close to her core or tail. However, what Julian saw made his stomach sink.

In the distance, he saw the dragonriders fighting the beastfolk and their tamed animals while another horde of creatures flew toward the Flying Pearl. There were just too many for them to handle.

The lack of experience with fighting dragons from the beastfolk and their eagerness to help by breaking their ranks put them in a terrible position. Now, Julian would need to go back and fix their mess while avoiding Zilri's death.

As he walked on her back and toward her left wing, the elder dragon flipped to the side, making the dragonborns lose their balance. She flapped her wings with force, making them plummet down. However, they had wings and would soon return to swarm her again.

This time, it was Zilri who attacked. She opened her jaws wide and snapped as the dragonborns tried to fly up and back toward her wings.

The movement was so fast and violent that Julian heard their scales crack and their organs being crushed by the force of Zilri’s jaw. It seemed like it wasn’t only his Arcane magic that could destroy Fenrir’s creations; an immense amount of force concentrated on their bodies would do just fine. It's a shame Julian had only one elder dragon in his army.

Taking back control of their flight, Julian and Zilri moved up to understand the situation better.

Below them, the swarm of dragons kept flying towards the Flying Pearl, finding Julian’s allies in the middle of the way, but some were already reaching the streets of the bright place.

“We need to slow them down, or they’ll swarm the others and then attack the troops on the ground,” he muttered and projected, knowing Zilri could hear everything he said. He patted her hot scales again, and she turned her massive neck towards the waves of dragons heading towards the island in the skies.

She flew down, burning every creature that passed them while Julian kept an eye open for another swarm of dragonborns coming their way, but not a single one appeared to continue the attack. They burned dozens and dozens of dragons and orcs, but more had flown past them. Zilri’s flames couldn’t reach the enemy without hurting their allies, so she kept firing against the creatures that hadn’t passed them yet.

At that moment, when she was about to raise another flame wall, a few of the dragonriders made a U-turn and decided to attack them instead of the eagles behind. Julian felt the first orc crashing against Zilri’s neck before he saw it. The scales shook violently as the orc leaped from the creature’s torso directly to Zilri’s, its axe shining red.

The creature downed its weapon towards Zilri’s scales, and the axe carved itself deeply inside her. Quickly and effortlessly, the beast made Zilri’s blood spray into the air. The elder dragon cried and shook her body, dropping the orc to the ground. The axe stayed there, fixed amidst her scales as she yelled in pain.

Julian rushed to her aid, exiting his position and flying to remove the axe. Her body relaxed a little, and her yells turned into an angry grunt. Fenrir must have imbued their weapons with his power just as he had done with their bodies. The devoid energy seemingly dismantled Zilri’s magic, allowing the axe to cut freely through her unprotected scales.

Her blood pouring from the wounds seemed to signal an alert to the other orcs surrounding them above their dragons. Their eyes glimmered with ill intent as they raised their axes and swords and commanded the dragons to fly toward Julian and Zilri.

They were surrounded in all directions now, a dozen orcs aiming at them while another hundred flew past them towards the island.

“I’ll take care of these,” Julian said inside her mind as he pointed to the orcs with their backs to the Flying Pearl. “Slow the others.”

Julian didn’t wait for a reply; he jumped from her back and flew towards the enemy ahead. He felt his armor engulfed by Ranabi’s power; he shone brightly, and the orcs noticed it. Some even covered their eyes, while other dragons started to move recklessly, trying to avoid the light source without understanding where it was coming from.

Behind the dragonriders, Julian watched the foot soldiers on the island. The eagles and their riders shone bright, just as Ranabi had said they would.

Seizing the moment, Julian became a whirlwind of death. With his elongated sword in one hand and his whip in the other, he spun in the air, cutting wings, limbs, and heads as he approached the stunned orcs. Their swords, imbued with the evil power, fell to the sea below as Julian removed the life from the evil creatures.

“Keep coming,” he muttered as he swung his blade in a vast arc, killing four dragons in one fluid motion and dropping their riders into the sea. He breathed deeply, stopping atop one mana platform he just created. He felt his mana running through his veins as it regenerated. Ranabi’s armor kept doing its job of providing both protection and durability in the fight.

Julian watched his allies regain control of the fight as the other dragons couldn’t reach them. On the Flying Pearl, weapons clanging could be heard from a distance, but their numbers were still superior to the dragons reaching them. The spears of the foot soldiers were enough to hurt or kill the dragons while the swordsmen fought the orcs that reached the ground.

“If we keep like this, we’ll win,” he said, turning to watch Zilri raining fire against the dragons who kept flying back, trying to avoid the heat. “Wait for me and be careful. There are more dragonborns hidden somewhere,” Julian said before flying back to Zilri’s neck. Her scales were almost too hot for him to stay seated there, but he would endure it as long as needed to end this war.

On the sea below, the ships filled with orc troops kept coming closer to the shore. Soon, Julian would need to deal with them, but he couldn’t risk burning them too far in the ocean, where hundreds of enemies could quickly surround him.

Zilri stopped in the middle of the sky, her flame wall making it almost impossible to see the other side. She kept moving only her neck, trying to sprawl the heat as far as possible, but Julian couldn’t hear any other beast being burned or plummeting into the sea.

There’s something wrong. He heard the grimoire’s voice inside his head and felt it wavering as if a shiver had run down her spine and then passed to his own. I think it’s him. Her voice became deep and almost sorrowful as Julian tried to see behind the wall of flame until he realized what was happening.

“Stop the flames! Move!” Julian shouted, but it was already too late. A bright red light appeared from the opposite side of the wall of flames. It grew as it consumed all of Zilri’s flames, and with each second she poured heat into it, it grew bigger and faster. Fenrir was consuming her energy and creating an enormous explosion.

Julian grabbed her hot scales and tried to pull her to the side; however, he wasn’t strong enough to pull a freaking elder dragon. Still, she noticed his cue, stopped the flames from exiting her lungs, and moved to the side.

The dodge wasn’t fast enough to protect her. It was aimed directly at her exposed chest, but as she moved to the side, the devoidic explosion hit Zilri right at the connection between her torso and her right wing. The blast was so massive and violent that Zilri didn’t even have time to scream before they started spinning and dropping to the ground.

When she was finally able to make any sound, they were already midway to the ground below. The world became a blur as the blue sky, the crimson flames, and the rocky ground below mixed in his sight.

Julian tried to create a platform to ease their fall, but it hurt the elder dragon more. The speed of their fall diminished, however.

“I’m sorry,” Julian said. “I have to do this.”

And then he kept creating the platforms just for Zilri to crash her back against them one at a time, slowing their fall but breaking a good portion of her scales in the process. Julian couldn’t see the wounds on her torso, but if they were even similar to the axe wound, she was in big trouble. He couldn’t risk her falling directly to the ground. They needed time for her to recover her senses.

After four bumps, he finally heard her flapping her wings. She didn’t bump into it or fall to the side when the last platform hit them close to her tail. She flapped her wings, easing her fall.

The ground was just near them, the battle mages watching in awe and despair as Julian and Zilri neared their positions. She flapped her wings again, but it was too slow to stop their fall. She slightly turned to the side just as they crashed violently on the ground. The only thing saving Julian from a concussion or his skull from breaking was Zilri’s scales gluing his legs in place.

He heard gasps from the crowd of soldiers on the shores and moved his head up, holding on to Zilri with his hands and releasing his legs to fall on his feet.

The elder dragon lay with her neck on the ground, her face limp, and her eyes closed.

“Zilri?” Julian asked, moving to see the damage. She didn’t reply. When Julian saw the explosion's damage on her, he understood why. From the connection between her right wing and her torso, her white scales had been replaced by white muscles covered in blood. It was as if the devoidic had erased her scales from existence.

Julian could see her blood pouring from the wounds between the now pink muscle, slowly covering her and staining her pristine scales. Julian could even see pieces of her ribcage here and there, and from her laborious breathing, it was clear something inside her wasn’t working as intended.

“Julian!” He heard Liz’s voice calling amidst the crowd as she rushed towards him. “Are you okay?” She searched his face, looking for any wounds but finding none besides his sorrowful face.

He looked at his wife, and she saw the hatred in his eyes. After enslaving Zilri for centuries, Fenrir still dared to try to kill her. Julian looked at the sky and saw the god standing above a dragon. It was the giant Julian had ever seen among Fenrir’s offspring, but it was still half Zilri’s size. However, what stole Julian’s attention wasn’t the black beast soaring in the skies but Fenrir’s presence there.

The god leaned on the dragon’s neck, almost hugging it, and looked at Julian with a sick smile. Even at that distance, Julian could feel the pleasure on the god’s face and knew that somewhere inside that body, Strazz was also smiling.

Fenrir pointed his finger towards the Flying Pearl, and without a word, the rest of the dragon horde beneath him flew towards the island in the sky.

“Should we help them?” Liz asked, holding Julian’s hand and pulling him back to reality.

Oddly enough, it was Ranabi who replied. The goddess stood beside Zilri’s dying body, one hand on her scales, as a green light exited her hands.

“That’s what he wants you to do.” The goddess put one more hand on Zilri’s body, passing it over her wounds. The light seemed to try to enter the exposed wounds, but could not. “His power doesn’t let me cure her. I’m afraid if I keep trying, I’ll feed the devoidic power still burning her flesh and organs,” she said ominously.

“What can I do?” Julian asked, but Ranabi didn’t answer. She only looked at him and then at the sky. No words were needed.

“Keep holding this position, Liz. The ships are almost here. I’ll help repel the attack on the Flying Pearl and then kill Fenrir. Stay strong until then,” Julian said, grabbing Liz’s shoulder with one hand. “Any news from Rayra and Thalia?”

“Nothing.”

“Find a way to let me know if they arrive. Still, let’s not count on their help. Kill every single one of the bastards you can and don’t let them land.”

Liz nodded, determination burning in her eyes.

A soldier waited for her on the edge of the line of battlemages. He had blue feathers exiting his helm, and when Liz approached, he listened carefully. After a few seconds, he started.

“Members of the Water Legion, prepare yourselves to sink those ships. Fire Legion, you’ll burn the ones we can’t drown. All the others stay sharp and ready to react. No mercy!” he cried out loud, and Liz assumed her position at the front of the line, every soldier looking more than satisfied to have one of their future rulers fighting alongside them.

“They have it all covered here,” Julian muttered, caressing Zilri’s face one last time before flexing his knee and preparing to fly. Ranabi nodded to him as if saying, “You got this,” as she grabbed a few herbs from inside her clothes to give to Zilri.

Julian flew to fight another horde of dragonborns.

Chapter Nineteen

As he went high in the sky, Julian watched as the first battleship sank beneath a giant wave. Liz stood at the front of the water mages, waving her hands as if raising something hefty from the ground. Behind her, the other water mages did the same, moving the sea with all their force. When the wave reached its peak, the first ship was already overturning. They pushed the wave with both hands, and the ship succumbed to the water below, the weight of the magic breaking its hull as the water did the rest.

“Good job,” Julian muttered, returning to the Flying Pearl in the sky, now surrounded by dragons and their riders.

The beastfolk tried their best. They fought the opposing force fiercely, but their numbers were surpassed more than Julian had supposed. There were no more waves of dragons flying on the horizon, only the ones circling the Flying Pearl, hacking and slashing with weapons, beaks, talons, and claws at everything they encountered.

Julian gritted his teeth, hearing the sounds of battle coming from the sky and below. When he looked back at the shore, he saw dozens and dozens of dragonborns erupting from the water. That wasn’t the place Julian expected to find them. Fenrir was indeed a cunning bastard. He sacrificed one of his ships full of orcs to create an opening for the dragonborns to strike the mages. For a moment, Julian thought about halting and returning to Liz’s aid. However, if there were someone able to deal with the dragonborns, it would be Liz and whoever she commanded.

He would need to trust their capabilities to fight there, as he was already committed to helping clean the Flying Pearl.

Julian slashed his sword upward, cutting a riderless dragon flying near him and then cutting another with his magical whip. The flying island covered most of his vision as he approached the rocks that seemed to sustain it in the air. Those enemies weren’t a problem for Julian, but there were just too many. For each beast Julian slayed, he found another two flying towards him. When he reached one street and put his feet on it, he had already killed five riderless dragons and spotted several mutated orcs running on the streets with their weapons.

Julian looked at the sky, watching the beasts swirling in the air with their scales of a multitude of colors. If they weren’t death incarnate, the scene would be almost beautiful. Gathering energy in his hand, he released several arcane blasts towards the monsters. He counted four plummeting to the ground below.

Too slow, he realized, turning his back to that task and dashing towards the direction the orcs had gone. If he helped the foot soldiers stand their ground, they could keep firing their arcane arrows at the creatures and slow the offensive.

In the distance, soaring far and above the sea, he could still see Fenrir on the back of his dragon, watching everything keenly. All those orcs were mere pawns for his evil plan. The coward chose to stand far away from the actual fight, probably searching for the right moment to strike most opportunistically.

“I’ll crush your plans,” Julian muttered, turning his back to the god and striding towards the mutated orcs.

He saw a group of orcs turning a corner and then heard a scream. His steps grew restless and faster as the terrible sound echoed. One orc raised his axe, ready to strike, while the others watched with pleasure. Words started to form in Julian’s mouth, just for him to bite his tongue. His sword would do the talking.

Approaching fast, Julian struck the attacking orc with the pommel of his sword, making it lose its balance and almost fall to the ground. The second orc didn’t even see his attack coming. Julian cut its head in a clean strike, shoving its headless body to the side as he thrust his sword inside the heart of a third one.

The fourth orc was more prepared, even if its eye showed the fear of a dead man. At least one of his eyes, since the other one had become Fenrir’s eye. A poor copy of an amethyst in the middle of a corrupted face. The enemy raised his axe, preparing to deflect Julian’s blow and attack back.

Julian felt the devoidic power on edge as soon as their blades touched, trying to consume his arcane one, but he was prepared for that. As his right arm rattled with the impact of the metal and magic, he raised his left hand toward the orc and exploded a blast that sent the enemy flying away, his stomach with a deep hole carved by the blue flames.

Behind you! the grimoire said inside his mind, and Julian turned, swinging his blade, severing the right arm and a part of the shoulder of the approaching orc—the first one Julian had struck. Again! the grimoire called. Julian prepared to hit just as he had done seconds before, but before he could do it, he heard a loud POP! The eye of the orc had just exploded from an arrow shot.

Julian saw a small soldier looking up from where the projectile had come. He was younger than Julian, and his hand shook like a leaf. His eyes were wide with terror. Only when Julian crouched at his side did the young man seem to relax a little.

“My King,” the soldier said. He wore the army’s attire, and his uniform was blood-filled.

“Rise, soldier,” Julian replied, trying to sound as calm as possible. Julian saw himself in that kid. That could have been him. He was a member of the army, son of a small house, and shitting his pants as the enemy knocked on his door. Life had asked something different from Julian, and now he was the one who needed this boy to grow up way faster than he was ready to. “Good shot. Now get up and do it another hundred times.”

“Yes, sir,” the soldier replied, rising fast. “You can stop hiding!” he called to the end of the street, from where another group of soldiers exited one of the noble houses.

“We ran out of arcane arrows, sir. I secured a place for them to wait while I was going to retrieve more. I saw no need to risk more than one life.”

Julian stared into the boy’s eyes for a few seconds, feeling proud of this stranger as if he were a dear friend. Julian smiled at him, waving for the others to approach. Julian then imbued all their quivers with magic.

“Go and do your job, soldiers. We’re winning,” Julian stated, not caring if his statement was only a half-truth. He smiled reassuringly and started moving.

“Do you want us to cover you, sir?” the first soldier asked.

“I already have cover,” Julian replied, eliciting more than one confused gaze from the men, but he had no time to explain. “Secure a good position, shoot at the dragons, drop them to the ground. Then, do it all again. Clear the skies and the streets as you travel to the main road.”

They all nodded, and Julian turned his back to them once and for all, rushing to the center of the Flying Pearl.

There weren’t as many orcs on Julian’s way to the main road. Still, as he strode through the street, he had some foes to kill. He could fly in the sky, but something called him for a run. Akin to when he trained in the desert, he wanted to feel his muscles doing all the work and not only his magical core. That was why he kept going as fast as he could, even quicker than his flight, but with his feet on the ground. He dropped three dragons on his way and killed another five orcs, always looking for more soldiers to put back in the fight.

When he arrived at the island's center, a few soldiers walked the streets behind him slowly but headed to the same position. Upon seeing the number of orcs fighting and turning the white streets into a crimson mess, Julian knew he had chosen correctly to look for more soldiers.

The beastfolk in the sky had been reduced to only half of their members; several dead eagles adorned the ground while others tried to keep fighting. Their flight was a gangly one. Broken wings and broken riders drove them to the ground.

As the orcs surrounded the archers, the dragons kept fighting as if nothing had happened. The number of fighters almost doubled compared to the beastfolk since the dragons showed way more intelligence than the tamed eagles. Everywhere he looked, he saw orcs raising their weapons and descending them against swords and spears as archers tried to find angles to help their friends on the ground and in the sky, forced to battle at a range way lower than recommended.

Contrary to what he had said to the soldiers, they were losing. And they were losing hard. If Fenrir planned to separate him from this part of the army to swarm over them, he had accomplished just that. However, Julian hadn’t hurt himself in the fall and was back for another round. He wasn’t sure if Fenrir could see him now, but he hoped he could.

Julian commanded his armor to once again shine as bright as possible. The light blinded the orcs, who turned to see who was approaching. As if responding to his own command, Ranabi’s aura circling his allies also shone, turning the light even more unbearable to the enemy. He knew from experience that this power wasn’t a continuous one. Every time Ranabi’s blessing was bestowed upon him and his allies, it ended as fast as it had arrived.

With no time to waste, Julian became death as he dashed through the hordes of orcs. His sword cut flesh and bone as if it were paper. The large street, crowded with fighters, quickly saw the battle turning as Julian’s whip severed orcs in half. He pierced others with his sword and maimed many more.

At that moment, Julian realized he could defeat them all. Orcs, dragons, dragonborns … all of them were nothing before his power. But he couldn’t do it as fast as he needed. He wasn’t sure if Fenrir had a good idea of how powerful Julian had become in the last few weeks, but Julian would make sure he knew.

When the number of beastfolk and soldiers surpassed the orcs, his eyes searched the whole street. Anasthasia was nowhere to be seen. He knew her enough to know she wasn’t one to run from a fight. She was either battling elsewhere or … Julian didn’t even want to consider it.

He looked into the distance and saw a trail of blood moving towards the castle.

“Stand strong! Retake the island!” Julian cried to the soldiers on the ground. One of the beastfolk turned into a giant lion and stopped tearing the flesh of an orc to roar into the skies as the other soldiers followed its primal war chant.

Slowly but surely, they would take the island back, of that he was sure. That was why he dashed towards the castle. Several dragons flew towards him as if sensing his intentions and wanting to stop him. He heard the grimoire’s voice warning him. Julian ducked as they flew past him, not wanting to attack and delay his run.

He ducked again after a second warning, but on the third time, more dragons came to kill him. This time, Julian didn’t duck. When the grimoire warned him, he swung his blade over his head, enlarging its point as it moved and cutting every one of the dragons. The first lost one wing, and as the blade increased, the gravity of their wounds also did. The last one fell to the ground, severed in half.

Julian didn’t even look at it, rushing to the castle as fast as he could.

There were no more dragons on the steps, but inside the main hall, at least two dozen orcs tried to break a wall of metal that stood firmly between them and their target.

“Ana!” Julian shouted involuntarily, knowing who held that position.

Upon hearing his voice, all the orcs turned their heads almost simultaneously. The eerie scene sent a shiver down Julian’s spine and simultaneously boiled the battle rush in his veins. They ran fast towards Julian as if knowing their only chance was to surround him.

They formed a semicircle in the hall, blades shining red with blood and devoidic energy as they dashed with speed.

Julian hit three of them with a blast and then three others. The other orcs were already too close to him when he felt the third blast prepared in his left hand.

One of them hit Julian’s armor with the flat part of its axe, making his arm rattle with the impact, and the blast slipped from his fingers, reaching the ground and causing an unintended explosion. The debris caught a few orcs, but most were undeterred by it.

Julian stepped back, deflecting one, two, three soldiers, just to be hit another three times in the ribcage by their powerful blades. Julian felt the devoidic power consuming Ranabi’s as the roots broke under the metal edges. If he kept receiving strikes, they would soon reach his body.

At least ten orcs were trying to swarm Julian. He could only deflect some strikes and choose which ones he would take but never counterattack. They were just too many and too concentrated on killing him.

The instinct to run washed over his mind, but Julian wouldn’t. He’d fly. He used his magic to make him fly backward as if the wind had just separated him from the orcs. Simultaneously, he formed a whip in his left hand and swiped it low. Some of the orcs were struck in the ankles, others in the knees, and a few unlucky ones in the thighs. They all fell to the ground, the third ones already agonizing with their arteries cut and their life slowly being drained.

There were still close to five orcs standing and another three recovering from the debris that hit them. However, their eagerness to fight had magically disappeared. All they showed in their wide eyes was fear. They were proud creatures nonetheless, and Julian could respect them.

All of them died by his blade, and not a single one tried to flee.

When he was done, the ground of the main hall was covered entirely in blood. The sounds of orc grunts had become only a memory, and Julian’s breathing was all he could hear.

Until the wall of metal was dismantled.

“Julian!” Anasthasia cried, her voice packed with emotion, and her eyes watered. Behind her, wounded soldiers, beastfolk, and rust orcs stood as Ubu tended their wounds, applying some of his blood magic to keep them alive. “I ran here to protect the wounded, but they followed. I thought we were doomed.”

She said, despair threatening to take over her. Julian took a few steps towards her, putting one hand on her shoulder.

“Breathe, dear. You did great here. We’re winning.” This time, Julian wasn’t telling a half-truth. Outside the castle, he could hear the sounds of battle, and the victory voices were those of his allies.

She did as he asked, and a single tear dropped from her eyes as she composed herself, holding her nose high again as a queen would.

“Great,” she said, smiling as if nothing had happened. “Ubu, tend to the wounded. I’ll assess the situation with Julian.”

She walked to the steps, her hands trembling. She quickly clasped them behind her back as she walked to the street filled with carnage with her expression stern. Julian followed close to her, and their steps were fast-paced towards the soldiers who still fought.

When they reached the center of the street, only a few orcs stood at the edge of their vision, fighting against some of the beastfolk, while close to no dragon could be seen in the sky.

“Your graces, you’ll want to see this.” The archer Julian had saved waved one hand for them, and they followed him. They reached the edge of the Flying Pearl with a full view of the shores beneath. There, Julian saw the ships landing and hordes and hordes of orcs running to the streets of Alinera.

The line of battlemages was being slowly but surely pushed back to the city's center, their magic solid but unable to defeat the number of dragonborns flying in the sky towards them. The first wave of monsters Julian had seen erupting from the sea below had turned into dozens and dozens of monsters.

They flew fast, using claws and magic weapons as they struck the army. Julian saw fireballs, water walls, and even flying boulders hitting the creatures, but nothing was enough to stop them.

“They need us,” Julian muttered, looking over his shoulder and seeing how few eagles he still had at his disposal. He could descend and help the fighters below, but seeing their numbers, it was clear that Julian’s army would entirely die before he could defeat the enemy. He had only one option now. “I’ll have to face him now.”

“Are you sure?” Ana asked, her face a grimace of pain and fear.

“Organize the descent. Everyone who can help must be on the ground. We defeated most of his winged force; now it’s time to end this,” he said as confidently as he could and loud enough for the soldiers close to hear.

“We’ll push them back,” Ana said with determination, her lips closing into a thin line. “Go kill the bastard.”

Julian nodded, looking in Fenrir’s direction. It was finally time to face him.

Chapter Twenty

Sensing the danger to their master, a few of the dragonborns flew from their position towards Julian. Half of them were fast enough to reach midway, only to be exploded by Julian’s arcane blast. The others halted as if hearing a silent order to stay back.

Julian was counting on them to follow him. Any dragonborn he killed would be an advantage to his army, but none would be as massive as killing the creature that empowered them. For all Julian knew, if he killed the god, they would all be as good as dead.

The bone knife on Julian’s belt grew heavy as he got close to Fenrir. He could now see the creature waiting for him in the distance. The salamander-like creature soared calmly in the sky, its slimy body shining against the sun. The creature’s body was only half covered by scales, but somehow, it looked more menacing than the other dragons.

Julian saw the similarities between it and its master. There was cunning intelligence in those eyes. When Julian approached it, he felt as if it was measuring him inch by inch, calculating the best way to kill him.

“You can try,” Julian muttered as he felt the wind speeding his travel. A blast exploded from Julian’s hand just to be stopped mere inches away from the god and his pet. Julian released another. And another. And another. Every blast had been stopped and helped create an immense sphere of devoidic energy before the god.

Julian was getting dangerously close to the power, but he was confident he could hurt the god that way. He gathered more energy this time, creating his biggest blast. The sphere flew at lightning speed, reaching the ball of devoidic power and being eaten by it. It entered with little to no resistance.

For a few seconds, Julian doubted it would work, but it did. The explosion occurred from the inside to the outside, shattering the devoidic power into a million pieces. The sky flashed with light, and Julian covered his eyes. Fenrir couldn’t take that much energy without getting overloaded. That had happened in the mirror realm and would keep happening here, and even more now that he was weakened after parting his last shard several times to feed his army.

Julian would only need to keep a safe distance, teasing the god to stay on the edge of danger.

Fenrir had other plans.

Julian flew back in the air as soon as he saw the explosion would hit him. The seconds of waiting were excruciating, but he had to endure. However, as soon as the blue and red started dissipating in the sky, he was caught by surprise by a figure exiting the remains of the explosion and flying towards him at immense speed.

It was too fast for Julian to catch a good look at the attackers, but he saw the god had just been injured. His nose was no more, and Julian saw the devoidic power fighting the dying flesh of Strazz. The god sacrificed some of his strength to get close to Julian, and he was more than successful.

Julian commanded the wind to dodge, but the enemy was too close. The dragon’s face hit him first, shoving him slightly to the side with the crashing impact. He felt the air escaping from his lungs as the second attack arrived.

His first instinct was to try to dodge again, and the second was to attack, confident in his armor, to take the strike. Neither option would help Julian. The god’s right hand glimmered with red light as it slashed Julian’s shoulder dangerously close to his neck.

A typical strike would do nothing against his root armor, but as the god’s hand traveled, Julian saw the armor slowly opening as if repelled by Fenrir’s presence. The weaponized hand cut as sharp as a blade would. Julian felt a hard edge slicing his pecs’ skin and muscle as he spun away in the air.

Searing pain hit his body as the world became a blur again. He commanded the wind to stop him in position, and he searched his surroundings as he felt the armor slowly returning to its place and healing his wounds. The pain was almost too much to take without gasping or panting, but the magic under the armor slowly softened it.

The god was nowhere to be seen.

He’s playing with me, Julian realized as he heard the reptilian hiss of the flying salamander in the middle of the clouds. Julian saw the creature’s silhouette exiting the pristine white clouds that slowly appeared in the air and flew fast toward him.

Julian prepared a blast, one of the bigger ones, and threw it at the creature. This time, the monster didn’t descend in a straight line. It kept flying in a zigzag, dodging every strike from Julian instead of trying to attack him.

Julian could feel his heart grow heavier with each foot as the creature approached. The sensation was suffocating; he could feel his skin getting wet with sweat and his chest slowly but surely closing. He had never felt this way in battle. Is this a real fear? he thought before realizing the roots around his body slowly tightened around him as the god approached. A faint but visible red light shone amidst them.

Realization hit Julian hard as he dismissed the armor. The healing on his pecs disappeared as soon as the roots revolved around him, crawling to the inside of his pendant. He felt his flight getting a little gangly as the pain took control of his mind. It was like Ranabi had told him. Fenrir could crush him inside his armor, and Julian couldn’t take that risk.

Deciding it was too close already, the monster in the sky started to fly directly toward Julian, not caring anymore about the mana blasts the lord could throw. Julian, on the other hand, was more worried about that now. The armor regenerated his mana constantly, making him reckless about its usage, but now he would need to take care of it. Overloading Fenrir with the mana would need to wait for the right opportunity.

This time, Julian would have the time to dodge. He repositioned himself as the monster approached. Flying to the right and striking down with his sword, Julian watched as his arcane blade cut through the air.

The enemy was too fast, but Julian could have sworn he saw Fenrir smiling. The god raised his red hand to intercept Julian’s attack. He was fast enough to deflect Julian’s attack if Julian aimed at him.

Arcane power cut the salamander's skin with ease. Julian saw the scales near its neck being severed in half as its blood appeared beneath the cut. The monster was fast enough to avoid a complete decapitation, but the gash Julian made in it was deep and extensive.

Another shriek and a hiss echoed through the air as the monster clasped its wings violently. Julian halted in the sky as he watched the creature violently rock in the air, trying to stabilize its flight but failing as the seconds passed.

Julian could finally take a good look at the god. He seemed worried. The human side of his face had its eyes going all over the place, while the red one, seemingly made out of devoidic power, was more concentrated on the beast below him. Julian doubted Fenrir felt anything for that creature besides fear of losing a good tool. The god disgusted Julian to his core, which was why he decided not to watch that scene for a second longer.

He exploded another blast in the god’s direction. With him halted and the dragon barely able to stay in the sky, that was Julian’s perfect opportunity. Fenrir extended his human hand towards the magical orb and stopped it, turning it into a red and black ball of devoidic energy.

Julian released another just for it to be consumed again. The god had no choice but to drink the power or be hit by it. As if having the same realization as Julian, Fenrir raised his other hand and downed it fast towards the salamander’s skull. The creature didn’t even see where the strike had come from.

The hand entered cleanly inside the monster’s brain and exited without resistance. The god’s hand was immaculate when the dragon’s body plummeted. At that moment, as one of Julian’s arcane blasts flew towards the god, Fenrir decided to act by himself.

He threw the devoidic blast on his own back, creating a big impulse of energy and flying towards Julian. His hand was already ahead of his body to absorb the third arcane blast coming his way.

Julian’s plan was frustrated once more as Fenrir consumed the blast and hit Julian with his corrupted version of an arcane spell. The pain was ten times worse than the cut he suffered on his chest. Julian flew, his hands and feet instinctively moving to the front of his body as the force on his chest grew more substantial.

There was no more air in his lungs, and there wasn’t a single drop of strength in his body as the blast pushed him with force toward the Flying Pearl at his back. He only noticed he was flying towards the island when his back crashed against one of the white walls and then another. Julian stopped counting after the fifth, his consciousness threatening to slip out of his brain as he felt his back touching the external wall of one of the noble houses.

The explosion had been so intense that Julian traversed from one extremity of the Flying Pearl to the other. He saw the yellow, almost orange, sun above his head, felt the dust of the destruction barging inside his lungs as he finally was able to breathe, and felt the blood pouring from a wound at the top of his head.

He blinked his eyes, slowly understanding his situation. He wasn’t defeated yet, but he was close. His chin dropped, and he looked down to his torso. He felt a circular wound covering all of his chest and abdomen, and when he tried to breathe again, all of it hurt. The wound was very similar to the one Zilri had.

Julian felt the energy escaping his body as if it were being stolen by the red and almost invisible flames that burned his skin. His mana core was shaking inside his body, fighting the invasive devoidic power, but it seemed impossible to avoid its spreading.

I’m sorry, Julian heard the grimoire’s voice. I couldn’t predict his attacks. He’s too strong for me. Her voice was full of sorrow. Julian could feel a note of resignation in her tone.

“I’m not done yet,” he was able to mutter between coughs. At that moment, he thought he was going to die, the pain was too much to endure. “He’s just a god, after all.” He tried to stand up, but simply couldn’t.

In the distance, he heard the sounds of fighting on the ground below. No one walked the streets of the Flying Pearl anymore. His strategy of splitting the fight into two parts could’ve ended badly, but his assumption had been fruitful. If they had any chance, even without his aid, it was because they’d finished almost all of Fenrir’s flying forces.

These thoughts barged into Julian’s mind, and he fought to shove them away. He didn’t need comfort created by his mind. What he needed was to get up and fight. He felt his palms touching the grass below him, the debris hurting his skin as his sore muscles and mana core tried to heave him up.

He grunted, trying to raise the strength to get up, but all he managed to do was kneel. He panted, and with each breath, his chest hurt even more.

“You didn’t even wait for me to kneel,” Fenrir’s voice muttered in front of Julian. “Humans are so pathetic.”

“I’ll never kneel to you,” Julian said beneath his breath, raising his head to see the approaching god.

At some point during their fight, the god lost even more of his human composition. The part of him that was still Baron Strazz had turned more skull than face now. Julian could see the bones beneath what was left of his nose and some protruding toward his eye. The sight was terrifying, but it brought anger and pity to Julian.

“He said the same to me. He kept saying it over and over.” Fenrir pointed one finger to his head, knocking it with force. “It was his idea to reach for the orcs. I would’ve thought of it eventually, but when he told me he had sent your father there, I realized it was a good opportunity to start over with old allies.”

The god crouched before Julian, taking his chin with one hand and making him look into his evil eye.

“But you had to be in the way. I should’ve known that you were too stubborn. You have his power at the end of the day, right? And Kael?” the god snarled in frustration. “I’m not even disappointed with that one. I could smell his betrayal from miles away, but honestly, I never thought he would succeed. He was too … emotional.”

Julian coughed again, ignoring most of the god’s words and concentrating on breathing.

“What can I do?” he asked the grimoire and himself, but Fenrir thought he was talking to him.

“You can keep kneeling. I can use you.” Fenrir half-smiled at Julian, feigning some gentleness that was impossible to mimic with his terrible features. “If you die … which will happen at any moment, I’ll just keep going until there’s nothing else for your race to fight for. If you help me, I can assure a safe haven for some of you. You and your offspring would be safe to keep living your pathetic lives, and I must confess I would love to see Strazz’s reaction when he realizes his love and his enemy are reunited, and all only happened because he decided to touch my shard.” The god giggled maniacally as the words slipped from his mouth. “Wouldn’t it be deliciously ironic?”

“What can I do?” Julian repeated the question, and this time, the grimoire replied.

Nothing … I don’t know. She staggered inside his mind. Maybe I can try to reach for Ranabi. She can deal with him.

“No!” Julian shouted, and the god stumbled back in surprise, looking way more human than he was used to showing. “That’s my mess to fix,” he said, remembering the promise he had made to himself. He wouldn’t depend on the whims of a god. Knowing Ranabi enough, she probably knew they were there, and he needed help, but the goddess had a strange moral compass that she battled to overcome. However, Julian believed she didn’t really want to suppress it. She wanted life to follow its course without interruptions. He wouldn’t implore for her help, not anymore.

“It seems you’re already more dead than alive after all.” Fenrir smirked, slowly heaving himself up. “I thought you’d be a bigger challenge. I saw you fighting in the skies. There was so much mana in the air.” He licked his lips; his mouth clearly watered. “You surpassed all my predictions and aren’t strong enough to fight me. All this magic is no match for me. I was made to defeat Cerulex, and even if I couldn’t kill the bastard cleanly, killing you will be just enough.”

“You talk too much,” Julian grunted, feeling blood in his throat. All this yapping had brought memories inside his mind. The grimoire’s agitation also seemed to support the idea. There was one spell, one that he never used before, one that was supposed to work in this exact situation.

“I’ll save you from my words. I have a world to dominate,” Fenrir said as Julian watched him raise his hand covered in devoidic power. As the enemy descended its hand towards Julian’s neck, he felt all the mana in his body quickly slip away. It was like removing a lid from a pot. The mana inside his body always wanted to escape. He permitted it. The spell Ranabi gave to him worked in time.

The devoidic power consuming his body faded away as quickly as the mana. Even with the empowerment of the energy leaving his body weakened, he was still stronger than seconds before. Flushing the mana out through his body somehow restored some of his physical strength.

He raised one hand and gripped Fenrir’s descending arm tightly. The god’s eyes widened as he put more strength into the strike, but Julian was stronger regarding raw physical power. Suddenly, the devoidic power couldn’t reach him anymore. The glowing energy could do nothing against a manaless body.

Julian felt empty, as if he had just lost a limb, but he chose to ignore it as he stood up, shoving the god away with one hand. Fenrir fell back like a sack of potatoes, his surprise still taking the best of him. Julian grabbed his sword at his side, now completely devoid of any traces of arcane power, and slashed towards the god.

Julian struck down fast, and Fenrir rolled to the side. The enemy was fast enough to dodge the first strike, but not the second. Julian pierced his sword into the god’s shoulder, and Fenrir screamed with pain.

As Julian removed the blade to strike again, the god fell back, using some of his energy to propel himself away. Julian had no mana, but mana was still everywhere, and Fenrir had free access. It was easier to fight him now, but it wasn’t a breeze. Besides that, Julian had no more enhancements to rely on.

“How?” Fenrir asked, holding his wounded shoulder as it poured dark blood.

“A little trick I learned,” Julian replied with a smirk as he prepared to attack again.

The god snarled as he waved one hand, and a big brick fallen from one of the walls flew towards Julian. He had time to dodge it and rush towards Fenrir, but the god was already expecting it. Another brick hit Julian in the chest and sent him back. The thudding pain opened his wound and made him grit his teeth, but he was far from giving up.

He could feel the mana wanting to enter his core again, but he fought it thoroughly. If Fenrir noticed Julian using mana, he would be doomed. He only needed a good opening to strike Fenrir.

However, it was freaking hard to find a window to attack while objects flew nonstop towards Julian’s head. He kept dodging almost every single one of them, his training kicking in as he went. He kept advancing forward while Fenrir retreated backward, trying to strike Julian before finishing him.

The lord’s strategy wasn’t much different. He needed to attack with his bone dagger, the one Rayra gave him, and to do that, he first needed an opening.

Julian accelerated his movements, putting two steps between each dodge as he approached Fenrir’s position. His sword felt light in his hand as the distance from his target grew shorter.

A brick flew towards Julian’s chest, and he dodged to the side, already stepping ahead while ducking a pan that flew towards his head. At that moment, a chair flew from one of the houses and almost hit Julian on the ankles, but he was faster. He leaped over it, already striking towards the god’s head.

The tip of his blade connected with the god’s collarbone, making a superficial but long gash. Fenrir faltered at that moment, his control over the objects around him slowly diminishing as surprise flooded him again. Julian took the opportunity to close the gap even more.

He struck in long arcs and deep thrusts several times, and Fenrir kept getting away with minor wounds. The god had trained some of his physical abilities. Or was Baron Strazz still in command of something inside? No, if he were, Julian would be fighting a real fighter, not a runner.

“I always knew you were a coward,” Julian shouted between strikes. Their dance had brought them back to the opposite edge of the Flying Pearl, near the first building Julian had destroyed when the god threw him.

“Who said I was running?” Fenrir asked, as Julian noticed a shadow approaching. He raised his hands to protect himself, and he noticed the building he had nearly destroyed falling over his head. When he looked back to Fenrir’s position, the god was nowhere to be seen.

Julian ran, trying to find a safe space. But he was struck before finding it. A building nearby fell before the one in front of Julian, and one of the bricks flew towards his back. Before he was buried by the one above him, he was sent rolling through the street by the one behind him.

Oddly enough, that saved his life. As the world spun again, Julian reached the edge of the Flying Pearl. His hands desperately searched for a place to hold until he found a falling brick at the end of the road.

Julian’s feet dangled in the air as he felt the searing pain in his back and watched the building fall on the street. He could feel a cramp forming in his left hand, holding him from falling. The sound of bricks falling on the street was almost deafening, and Julian had to hide his face from being hit by other fallen debris.

His right hand still gripped the pommel of his sword, but he couldn’t keep holding it for much longer. He could create a platform beneath him or fly into the skies and be safe. However, he felt Fenrir was near, only waiting to see if Julian would do it and use his mana against him, burning him with devoidic power once more and watching him fall to his doom.

“Sorry, Mom. I’ll get it back, I promise,” he said, letting his sword fall from the skies. When he looked down to see its trajectory, he got a glimpse of the fighting soldiers near the shores. The sight sent a shiver down his spine and made his stomach sink into his belly.

Orcs swarmed the shores as the mages tried to keep them from advancing. With each second that Julian looked at the fight, it became more evident that they were losing by a good margin. The orcs were slowly outnumbering the mages as their ships finally reached the city. In the skies, the dragonborns kept soaring over the army, attacking the soldiers with all their might and breaking all the lines. It wouldn’t take long until the enemy overcame them. Two of his wives were down there; he needed to end this soon.

Julian prepared to heave himself up on the ledge and felt his muscles slowly but surely helping to raise him. It wouldn’t be easy, but he could manage it. Excruciating pain reached his left-hand fingers, and Julian had to bite his tongue not to scream. Fenrir stomped Julian’s fingers with gritted teeth at the edge of the destroyed Flying Pearl.

“You almost got me, vermin,” he spat the words out angrily as he twisted his feet over Julian’s hand. They were on the verge of breaking. Julian gritted his teeth and closed his eyes, enduring the pain before saying.

“What does that say about you?” he snarled as an involuntary chuckle crawled into his throat.

“And they say I’m the crazy one,” Fenrir said, looking at Julian and then down at the army below. “You’re completely doomed. I’ll let you try to get up. Maybe use your magic. I’m eagerly waiting,” the god said with satisfaction, moving his feet from Julian’s hand and moving backward.

Julian’s heart filled with anger as he realized the god wanted to play with him again. He closed his eyes, breathed deeply, and looked down again. He still had the strength to hold himself for a few minutes. He only needed a plan.

At that moment, looking at the mayhem in the capital's streets, Julian heard the air being cut by a sharp blade. He didn’t know if Fenrir knew that sound, but Julian sure did. After that came the sound of hooves and then the sound of arrows flying.

“You’ll want to see this,” Julian shouted, calling for Fenrir, who finally noticed the strange disturbance below. The god’s face appeared on the edge with a tinge of curiosity on the corner of his mouth.

“What’s that?” he asked, his eyes widening with terror as the horses with golden armor crowded the streets. Archers released arrows from behind them while they found openings to strike the advancing orcs. They shouted in a strange language that Julian didn’t understand but recognized. The elves had come to their aid.

When Thalia exited the portal on Rayra’s back, he saw her glaring at him, their connection probably alerting her that somehow he was in danger. He wasn’t surprised when she entered a second portal and made another one appear in the air beneath his feet. He looked up and saw everything he needed to see above Fenrir's head.

“I’ll see you soon,” Julian said, looking directly at Fenrir, who seemed to be taken out of his trance and moved fast to reach Julian. But he had already released his hands.

“Coward! Come here!” the god screamed, a tinge of desperation in his voice, as Julian fell and felt the portal engulf his feet.

“I’ll go anywhere,” Julian muttered as he exited the portal above the god’s head. He unsheathed the dagger and thrust it towards the god’s torso, aiming for the heart but in a terrible position to strike true.

The bone dagger entered deep, close to the wounded collarbone of the god, but still far from his heart.

“Arrgh!” Fenrir grunted with his distorted, ugly voice as Julian’s weight crashed over him. The lord saw the god’s flesh being burned, torn apart by the bone dagger as if it were cleansing his body, turning into something indeed material and not purely evil. Whatever it was actually doing, it was hurting Fenrir.

Julian raised the dagger again, now with a clear path to the god’s heart, but when he was about to strike, Fenrir grabbed him by the arm and rolled over, bringing Julian to a free fall.

The world spun as mana tried to enter his core as if it wanted to ensure Julian would survive the fall, but he kept denying it and stabbed the god repeatedly. He felt it enter the ribcage, the arm, and the neck, but always missed the heart. Fenrir grabbed Julian in a tight embrace, doing everything possible to deny him the right angle, feeling his death was near.

Dragonborns flew towards them, only to be met by arcane arrows that didn’t miss a spot. Others entered portals when they were about to grab their master, only to be struck by water or metal magic.

Julian’s wives enabled his fighting, and he couldn’t be more glad. He kept stabbing as their speed increased, and the god’s force seemed to falter. The ground was near, and he wasn’t encountering the right angle to strike.

“Portal!” he shouted, unsure if Thalia would hear it, but she did. A portal appeared beneath them. The devoidic energy surrounding Fenrir’s body seemed to respond to the magic as if repelling it, preventing the god from entering the other realm. The jump created by Thalia was of pure mana in the end. Fenrir would never enter it unless it was corrupted.

It was a gamble, but one that paid high. It repelled them, but the god connected more with the corrupting portal than Julian. The lord was propelled with more strength, and in that millisecond, he raised and downed his dagger one last time, reaching Fenrir’s heart. It wasn’t all the way through, but it was enough.

His devoidic energy seemed to disappear for a second, and they fell again, this time going through the portal and landing on the main street of the Flying Pearl. Julian’s body crashed over Fenrir’s as he tried to catch the breath that had once again escaped his body.

He grabbed the knife’s pommel to finish the enemy. He only needed to push it further and twist it. If the beastfolk were right, that would be enough to kill him. However, before Julian thrust the knife, he felt the god's grip on his two arms. His face was a grimace of pure hatred.

“Who do you think you are?!” he shouted as spit escaped his lips between each word. “You’re just a human.”

Julian kept pressing it, his hand trying to push the dagger, but the god showed a strength Julian didn’t know he had. The dragonborns from below slowly approached the Flying Pearl, their wings aimed towards Julian. Without mana, he didn’t have the force to overcome the god so quickly. He would need a few more seconds, but the winged monsters wouldn’t give it so quickly.

Julian gritted his teeth and pressed harder, shouting with anger.

“Die!” he screamed, feeling the grip on his arm softening. He looked into the eyes of the god and saw recognition in his human eye while the red one glimmered with a dimmer red.

“Do it, boy.” Fenrir’s mouth moved, but it was Baron Strazz who spoke. “I can’t hold him much longer.”

Julian realized the god was still there, pushing against Baron Strazz. The old man could only soften his grip a little, but it was enough.

Julian pressed the knife deeper into the god’s heart and watched as his eyes blinked with shock. Julian felt the point of the knife going all the way to almost touch the god’s back. Red light licked from the wound alongside dark, purulent blood. The dark light seemed to be consumed by the bone knife. Fenrir tried to fight back, his hands desperately holding Julian’s arms and trying to push him away. Sweat fell over the god’s face as Julian pressed until he felt the rock ground touching the blade's tip.

Fenrir grunted, teeth gritted, and Julian heard a small pump inside the god’s chest. It was as if something had exploded, but the flesh around it muffled it. Fenrir’s expression softened as they kept staring at each other.

He wasn’t sure whom he was seeing at that moment. The words he uttered were so low that Julian would never know if it was the god or the Baron who spoke.

“Just human,” they whispered before closing their eyes for the last time.

Chapter Twenty-One

Julian let the mana enter his body as he heaved himself up, his instincts keeping him alert. He looked up, trying to see where the approaching dragonborns were, but all he saw was a pair of wings passing past the edge of the Flying Pearl. He had to walk a few steps to see the monsters plummeting down below, seemingly lifeless.

The few dragons still in the air also fell to the ground. There was no scream, shriek, or hiss echoing. It was like life had been removed from them instantly. They collided against the ground with loud thuds while the soldiers watched with shocked expressions.

The orcs, on the other hand, didn’t stop their rampage. Maybe they kept fighting because they were only half infected by Fenrir’s influence. The orcs fought more slowly compared to the violence they were showing just a few minutes before, but still, the soldiers had to turn back and fight.

Julian prepared to descend as he looked again at Fenrir on the ground. The god and the man were gone. Conflicted feelings washed over the lord, but he decided to ponder them when he was finished with the attackers.

He jumped from the edge of the Flying Pearl. The wind flapped his curls towards the sky as he watched the ground become closer. Somewhere down below, his wives were still fighting for their lives, and Julian needed to aid them.

Thankfully, that wasn’t a problem at all. Before Julian could command the wind to drive him to the fray, Zilri’s body appeared below him, catching Julian from the sky in the position he was getting accustomed to sitting in when he went to battle.

“Are you okay?” Julian asked in a mutter, and she replied inside his mind.

He’s dead. I’m more than fine.

And you? Julian spoke internally, trying to reach his grimoire. He got no answer from it. Looking back, he realized she had been relatively silent since he struck Fenrir and even a little before that. Maybe she’s out of energy to communicate, he thought as he patted Zilri’s hot scales.

“Let’s end this,” he said, pointing to the orcs invading the streets close to the shores.

It didn’t take long for all the orc troops to be defeated. Julian and Zilri burned all the ones still crawling toward the army, making the lines of enemies lose their replacements.

Elves, humans, and beastfolk ended the war with their weapons on the front. Half of the unburned orcs died by their blades, while the other half surrendered.

Julian soared the sky on Zilri’s back as he watched the soldiers capture the surrendered orcs. A good part of the soldiers secured the ships still on the sea while Julian flew high in the sky. Most soldiers were far from the shores, their eyes looking directly toward Julian as the sun descended on their backs.

At the front of the soldiers, Julian saw four figures he knew very well. His four wives waited for him, and Julian guessed they had giant grins on their faces.

“I think you can rest now, Zilri. There’s no reason for being a dragon anymore.”

That would be very pleasant, she replied with a tired tone, revealing the last few days had taken a higher toll on her than she showed.

“Take me to them,” Julian said, pointing to his wives.

I’ll do it, but know I’m not in the mood for being ostracized, Julian. I’ll do as I said before.

“Everything will be fine. Trust me. You won’t need to go away.”

Right, she replied, but Julian felt a pang of irony in her tone. He couldn’t blame her for that.

When Julian descended from her back before his wives, she immediately turned into her humanoid form. He didn’t have time to see her with the group hug that followed his approach.

The girls grabbed him with all their force, making him lose his breath and grunt with pain from his wounds. They didn’t seem to care, though. After a few seconds, he ignored the pain as he felt their tight and warm embrace. They took turns kissing his whole face and lips to ensure he was there. Ana was the most eager of them all, her eyes watering.

“I thought I’d lost you,” she said, her voice packed with emotion. “I just found you guys.” Her voice was a mutter as she tried to keep her regal composure.

“I told you I’d deal with it,” he said with a grin as he kissed her gently. When they parted, he noticed the other girls were looking behind his shoulder. Ana followed their gaze in Zilri’s direction. Julian expected their reprimanding gaze, but they only had a welcoming smile.

They walked towards the elder dragon and hugged her tightly, to Zilri’s surprise.

“Thank you, Zilri,” Liz said.

“We talked about this whole situation, and we want to say to you that the family grew too fast, but we want to welcome you into our family,” Rayra said, her eyes full of compassion but firm words.

“You’ll be welcome to stay with us as we get to know each other as sister-wives. What do you think?” Thalia asked while Anasthasia nodded in agreement.

“I…” the goddess started, a strange stuttering born in her throat. “I guess I’m fine with it,” she finally said, smiling from the corner of her mouth as she looked at each of them.

Julian looked at them with an immense grin and opened his mouth to say, “I told you so,” but without uttering the words. Zilri smirked and changed her attention back to the girls before her.

A hand touched Julian’s shoulder. He turned fast, the battle instincts still kicking in as he looked towards the person behind him. The nearly closed eyes, and the smile calmed him, however.

Ranabi looked straight into Julian’s eyes. Her wrinkles seemingly deepened, and her back curved. It was as if she had aged ten years from the last time he had seen her.

“Here,” Julian said, giving her the pendant that stored his root armor. “Thank you, Ranabi.”

“You don’t need to give me this back. It was a gift,” she replied gently, refusing the pendant with one hand up.

“I don’t want a gift that sucks the life out of you. That’s what this does, right? This and all the blessings you gave us.”

Her lips became straight as she finally took the pendant in her thin, long fingers. “Yes. I was afraid Fenrir would kill me if I helped you. It was hard not to fight by your side, but my presence would probably help him more than you.”

“I imagined you were paying a heavy price, but not so heavy,” Julian said somberly. “You could’ve died.”

“I was very close to it,” she replied. “I couldn’t heal our dragon friend, but I spent much of my power keeping her alive.”

“Thank you, Ranabi,” Julian said again, this time more sincerely, as he felt a tinge of guilt crawling into his heart.

“I’m the one who needs to be grateful, son,” she replied, caressing his face tenderly. “Thanks to you, we can finally live in peace.”

“It was a team effort,” he replied automatically.

“Indeed. But without your leadership, that would never have worked.”

Julian nodded, not wanting to argue. Deep inside, he knew her words were valid and felt immensely proud of himself.

“You know,” he started, unsure if he wanted to stay on the subject, “in the end, even Baron Strazz fought Fenrir.”

“I saw it,” Ranabi said, her hand searching for Julian’s and gripping it tightly.

“That’s what’s not feeling right.”

“What, boy?”

“After all this. All he did to me and my family. It doesn’t feel right that he helped in the end,” Julian sighed. “Am I being selfish for thinking like that?”

“You’re just being human. That’s why Cerulex loved all of you, and Fenrir hated you with the same intensity.” She gripped his arm more forcefully, wanting his full attention. “The power to change yourself and the world. That’s what makes you different. Baron Strazz’s mistakes aren’t erased after his sacrifice. It only shows your capacities. Yours and all the other races not created by Fenrir’s evilness.”

“I see,” Julian said after a few seconds. “The baron must’ve suffered tremendously inside that body.” Julian let the words slip from his mouth, not knowing exactly what he was feeling. It was hard not to feel angry towards that man, but all Julian had experienced in the last few months had taught him hard lessons. This one Ranabi was telling him was probably the most difficult until now.

“He did,” Ranabi joined the conversation. “His suffering is over now, and it’s our responsibility to heal the world. There’s someone here who was looking for you.” Julian’s eyes searched behind Ranabi’s shoulder as he slowly comprehended his surroundings again.

Behind the goddess, the spirit that resided in his grimoire stood tall. But she was different. First, she wasn’t blond anymore. Instead, her hair had assumed a black coloration, her eyes becoming as dark as her hair. Her body, before slim and athletic, had become more curvy. Her waist was quite thin, while her hips were large. Her figure was busty, and she seemed removed from a tale.

If Julian didn’t know her innocent eyes or blushed cheeks, he would never have recognized her. However, as soon as his eyes crossed hers, he knew it was her.

“You’re here,” he muttered as Ranabi moved to the side with a giant grin on her face.

She smiled, her eyes averting to the ground. Julian approached her and heard a small gasp as their hands touched.

“You saved me,” she said, finally looking into his eyes. Her gaze was like a pool where Julian could easily drown without complaining. Her lips were full and red, moving beautifully as she spoke in a low tone.

“Did I?” he was able to ask.

“Yes. With the death of both Cerulex and Fenrir, the balance was restored. The mana residing in the grimoire was too much for the book’s form to contain. I needed a new body.”

“Oh.” Julian had no better words to say as he contemplated her eyes again. “What’s your name?”

She chuckled at that question, and Julian did as well.

“I don’t have a name … yet.” She blushed and averted her gaze. “Would you help me with that?”

“Of course!” he said, smiling broadly and moving towards his wives as he held one of her hands. “I need to introduce you to my family.”

Chapter Twenty-Two

Julian watched from the top of his manor as the people from Alinera’s capital exited Thalia’s portal. The mana inside his body seemed as much in turmoil as Julian himself. His heart beat against his chest like a mad drummer going to war. Thankfully, he was far away from war.

People from all races wore their best outfits as they approached the wooden benches Ranabi had created and sprawled through the plantation grounds. The seeds hadn’t been planted yet, making it a perfect spot for the thousands who waited for the ceremony. Ranabi had also created a living roof above the plantation, which Liz had carefully watered before. Even at the sun's highest point, Julian could feel a cool breeze coming from the place.

“Master, they are ready,” Tarav said from behind Julian. When the lord looked at his old servant, he smiled. Jet was rubbing the butler’s legs with affection.

“You found her!”

“She found us, sir. The little one was probably enjoying her freedom while we mourned her supposed death.” Tarav smiled broadly. Jet’s absence after the firing had took a toll on the old butler and Julian had shared some of his sorrow toward the black cat.

Jet seemed to understand Tarav’s words and meowed almost pleadingly. The simple scene filled Julian’s heart with joy.

“And you are ready, old friend?”

“I hope so, Julian,” Tarav said, his voice a little on edge. “My apologies. I’ll do my work, master.”

“Of course, you will,” Julian said as he walked past the butler, not wanting to give any other reason for the man to get emotional.

When Julian arrived at the end of the stairs, the portal was already closed, and four silhouettes waited for him on a stage Ranabi had created for the ceremony.

Julian walked to the place nervously, his mouth drying and his palms full of sweat as he approached the chattering crowd. Some of his workers waited inside the manor walls, clapping their hands and wishing Julian good luck. He returned the warm gestures with smiles and slight bows.

Soon, he was close enough to the stage to see them in full view. They all wore similar dresses, varying only in color. Details of gold adorned the edges of the strapless dress, from the long tail to the collar. They all had the Lion brooch close to their hearts, and they all smiled at him.

Anasthasia, with her white dress and pristine smile, looked as regal as ever. Liz, with her deep blue one, already watered with emotion. Rayra feigned stoicism as she stood tall in her green dress, her eyes slowly traveling from one side to the other, revealing her secret insecurities. Thalia, on the other hand, couldn’t hide the jitters. Her feet kept tapping against the wooden floor below her nonstop. But her grin stayed large, and her eyes glimmered with anticipation.

Zilri was the tallest of them all, her golden dress shining brightly and a confident smile on her face. She had confessed to him that she wanted to marry naked, but he convinced her at the last moment to wear a dress. He smiled, remembering it, and turned his gaze to Niv.

The former spirit had chosen that name, and Julian thought it was more than fitting. She wore a black dress that accentuated her curves. The list of things she had never done seemed to never decrease, so it wasn’t a surprise to see her nervous. However, as soon as her eyes met Julian’s and Liz held her hand firmly, she calmed down.

Julian had thought Niv’s presence would be a problem, but on the same night they defeated Fenrir, all his other wives welcomed Niv after hearing her story. Her manners and good nature won the girls over. The fact that they had just saved the world seemed to make everyone’s mood better somehow.

Standing there in the stand, all the girls looked simply amazing. Everyone made sure to tell Julian he was lucky, but in reality, they had no idea how much of a lucky bastard he was.

The crowd erupted in cheers when everyone was on top of the stage. Some beastfolk emitted animal sounds while elves shouted in a strange language. Julian still had shivers from his encounter with Thalia’s mom. If the twin snake elves looked dangerous, the noble ones were simply scary. She was there, though, as regal as Anasthasia. The high elves stood in the first row alongside all the parents who had come to the party.

Julian’s parents were already crying, taking turns to make sure the others weren’t seeing them cry while everyone could hear their low sobs. Julian was eager to chuckle, but his nervousness was more significant than that. Each time he looked at his wives, he got even more nervous.

His heart only calmed down in his chest when he heard the footsteps behind him and saw Tarav approaching. When the old butler cleared his throat, everyone fell silent.

“As the old tradition requires, a family member must officiate the wedding,” he stated, walking towards the edge of the stage. “When I was young, marriages like this weren’t common anymore, and now they are a rarity. I’ll not enter into our society's practicalities, but I remember dearly the few weddings I participated in. Julian’s parents were one of them, as it is more common for nobles.

“The problem is that I no longer have a blood family. In a way, I should never be allowed to do what I’m doing right now if I was a member of any other family. However, I’m lucky enough to be friends with Adrian and Marcella Lionheart and to have raised Julian, who grew to be the best man I have ever known.”

Tarav’s words echoed through the crowd, and Julian heard some gasps as he had to control his emotions with all his force not to cry.

“Julian is…” Tarav started, his voice full of emotion. “Julian is like a son to me, and I’m honored that he and his parents asked me to officiate the wedding,” he finally said, breathing deeply at the end.

“Before I cry in front of thousands, I’d like to start the ceremony.” The crowd laughed hard as Tarav slowly turned his back to them and walked between Julian’s wives and him. The butler removed a white cloth from a small purse he carried on his belt. Julian could see the perfect shape of a Soul Shard surrounded by the fabric.

One of the workers moved a small platform towards them and gave Tarav a hammer. The butler ensured the package was well wrapped and hammered it down once, but the sound could be heard in the wind.

“Please,” Tarav said, waving one hand so they could get near the round platform. “You know what to do?” Tarav asked in a mutter, and everyone nodded. He saw some crowd members rising to catch a good glimpse of the ritual, but it would be complicated with Julian and his wives surrounding the broken shard.

Tarav moved away from the circle they formed and removed his hand from the cloth. As soon as the mist of mana appeared in the air, they all breathed it in simultaneously, each grabbing a small piece of the shard and eating it. At that moment, looking into their eyes, Julian felt the rush of energy in his core and the established connection of an Arcane Tie. They were now connected in more than one way.

“Written by the Lost Soul,” Julian said.

“Sealed by the Last One,” his wives repeated in unison. The crowd followed his words.

“As I seal this union, I declare you all intertwined as a family in a complete shard of love and devotion,” Tarav muttered as Julian grinned from ear to ear, opening his arms and receiving a tight hug from his wives. His military coat would probably be rumpled, but he didn’t care.

The crowd erupted in cheers and claps. The thousands who were there to celebrate their love earnestly shared their joy.

Julian kissed his wives, and his smile insisted on staying fixed on his face. He heard more than one “I love you” and said the same to his wives another thousand times, yet they would never know the extent of his love and gratitude for finding them.

Julian drank a sip of wine with his back to the manor walls. Everyone was more than filled with good food now, and many of them were already more drunk than they needed to be. On the other hand, Julian was just now drinking his first glass.

He still needed to be crowned king later that day, so he needed to be calm and sober. Almost everyone was inside the castle walls, so when he saw Zilri's almost nude back walking away, he recognized her instantly.

First, he thought about not saying anything. She was probably taking some time to think, but he decided to approach her when she deviated from the party’s surroundings and started to move away from the manor.

“Zilri!” he called after shortening the distance by half.

She turned to face him, and her expression was one of shock. She wasn’t expecting to see him.

“My mate! What are you doing here?”

“I could ask you the same.”

“You could.”

“So…”

“I need to go,” she replied abruptly, her hands falling to the side of her body and her face assuming a grim look Julian wasn’t familiar with.

“To where? We just married. You seemed more than happy before.” he said, getting close to Zilri.

“It’s not that,” she replied, her eyes facing the ground instead of Julian. “Something changed.”

“What? You can tell me,” Julian asked, putting his glass of wine on the ground and grabbing one of her hands while the other touched her chin. When she looked at him, he felt she was ashamed.

“The Elder Dragons felt the change after Fenrir’s death. They’re coming, and they will find me.”

“We can help you.”

“Maybe. I’m not so sure, Julian. Their power is primal, and even though they are not much stronger than Fenrir, they are united.”

“We’ll deal with it,” Julian said, ignoring Zilri's ominous omen. His focus was on not losing her. “When are they coming?”

“Soon. Like in ten or fifteen years,” she said in a hurry.

“That’s not soon, Zilri, and it’s no reason for you to escape. Even five years is a long time.”

“I’m slowly getting my old perception of time. I’m sorry,” she said, caressing his hand and still trying to avert his gaze. “I’ll not be a burden. It’s not my nature.”

“Let us decide if you’re a burden,” Julian stated. “I made a promise a few days back. I promised I’d never depend on the whims of a god, and I intend to keep this promise. No matter if it’s Fenrir, Ranabi, or Elder Dragons. I’ll find my way to stand my ground. You can trust that.”

Those words seemed to strike her heart deeply. She finally stared into his eyes, and he could see her gaze burning. She desperately wanted to cling to him, and he had no objection.

“Are you sure?” she asked.

“As long as I breathe, I’ll protect you,” Julian said, holding her arm gently but firmly. She smiled, and they walked back to the party, holding hands with the hope of a better future.

Oddly enough, the prospect of another fight with gods made Julian’s heart pump with excitement. I’ll need to be stronger to face you. Julian pictured dragons as immense and powerful as Zilri. And you better be sure I’ll protect my family no matter what.

About the Author

Hey, I'm Alex Prone, a fantasy enthusiast and aspiring storyteller. When I'm not chasing after my little one or tackling chores around the house, you'll often find me immersed in the pages of fantasy novels. "Game of Thrones" and Brandon Sanderson's Cosmere have been huge inspirations for me, shaping my love for weaving tales of adventure.

In my stories, expect thrilling adventures, genuine connections, and just a touch of spice to keep things interesting. My main goal is to offer you a brief escape from reality, introduce you to worlds where the impossible becomes possible and the guy gets the girl at the end.

Check This Out!

Thank you for reading!

If you enjoyed this book, please leave a review.

Reviews are so important to authors.

Join the Royal Guard Publishing Discord to participate in tons of giveaways, extra content, and chat with all our authors and narrators.

Check out Dinosaur Warlord and Minotaur’s Maze of Monster Girls.

For more Harem Lit / LitRPG Adventures:

www.royalguardpublishing.com

https://www.facebook.com/RoyalGuard2020

https://www.facebook.com/marcus.sloss.524

https://www.facebook.com/groups/dukesofharem

https://www.facebook.com/groups/haremlitbooks

https://www.reddit.com/r/haremfantasynovels/

https://www.facebook.com/groups/LitRPG.books

https://www.facebook.com/groups/litrpgforum

https://www.facebook.com/groups/LitRPGReleases

https://www.reddit.com/r/litrpg/

https://www.facebook.com/groups/LitRPGsociety