The days after Seren’s and my big talk showed a marked difference from before. Part of it was that Seren and I were back together, and even spent more time together than before. Though, some friction over my past remained, which was understandable.

It wasn’t every day one learned that their loved one was the evil incarnate that you grew up learning to despise.

Not actually something that could be overcome by one single talk.

The other big change over the roughly two weeks since the talk was that I was sleeping again. Something that I was doing more than I was spending my nights awake doing my vast variety of tasks.

Mainly because Seren was spending most nights at my apartment, so it was her fault, really.

Totally wasn’t going to blame myself for wanting to spend as much time as possible with her, nor was I going to admit that getting some sleep every now and then was actually rather nice. Even if I didn’t need it.

Sleep was a time marker and something I was slowly starting to learn to enjoy as a way to relax.

So, okay, maybe I just did it because I wanted to and not because Seren seduced me into joining her in bed.

Not that it didn’t help make it more comfortable for me.

Anyway, with these two changes I found myself incredibly busy, as it turned out that holding classes fifty hours a week, managing all the farmland in Paideia, maintaining and changing the enchantments, enforcing the protection of the animals that had taken refuge in the Flornum Forest, and keeping up on all my duties in regards to the school’s foreign relations was very demanding when one spent eight hours a day sleeping.

Even for someone like me, who made all of those tasks easier with some magical application.

Not to mention, Fluminix needed my fair share of attention. With her magic having grown in, she needed more of it than before. Coaching a dragon in using their magic the right way was difficult when the one teaching had no real experience using magic like a dragon. I only had an academic knowledge of how dragons used their magic, aside from my own experiences with innate magic.

Not that those experiences were of any help, as they differed, if only slightly, from one individual to another.

So, yeah, I was very busy and not very confident I could be a good guardian for the infant dragon going forward. Which had me thinking of taking her to her kin, who would be much better at teaching her the draconic way. As well as teaching her how to be a dragon, because I was starting to notice that she was copying a lot of my behaviour.

Besides, it wouldn’t be too long before she was simply too big to remain at the school.

At two years old, she would be about the size of a small horse, which was just too big to have walking around the school’s corridors. So, I would have to take a trip up north, to the North Pole, where the dragon monarchs had made a refuge for dragons when the dragon hunts started.

All of that was on my mind when Seren, Fluminix and I were enjoying our newfound morning ritual of eating breakfast together about two weeks after the big talk, when the sound of bells ringing had me lowering my cup of tea and frowning.

“What is it?” Seren asked with some confusion, laced with a hint of fear. “What’s going on?”

“I don’t know…” I said, as I got up and made my way to the balcony.

When I reached the stone banister, my frown deepened. On the other side of the village, a large gathering of white and gold clad men and women were making their way towards us, marching in perfect order.

“Happy birthday to me, huh?” I asked sarcastically.

“Why?” Seren asked whilst joining me, before she followed my gaze. “Wait, is that…?”

“The Luminus State?” I finished for her. “Yes, it is.”

She turned towards me with a questioning look at the same time as I heard the front door open and someone make their way into my apartment with hurried steps. “Why are they here?”

“Oh, you know, just rewarding me for helping them deal with the lich thing,” I said with a shrug, and turned around to face my visitor. “Morning, Eweleanor. I take it you’ve reached the alarm at the school already?”

“I have,” the headmistress said curtly for brevity’s sake. “Miss Cacciatore and Mister Haddad should be organising groups to help the people in the village evacuate to the school as we speak.”

“Wait,” Seren cut it with frustrated confusion. “What’s happening? Why is an army of the Church here? And what does it have to do with the lich you helped defeat two weeks ago?”

“Oh, we’re under attack, my dear,” I answered with a casual calm, as I plucked my cup from the air, having floated it over as she spoke. “They always do this after I helped them out.”

“Why?” she demanded.

“Because they always mistake my aid for interference, of course,” I answered with a slight shrug, as I turned back around to look at the approaching army. “That, or they just don’t like me getting any recognition for my actions.

“Probably the last one.”

“What will you do in response?” Eweleanor asked, her brows furrowed in thought as she took in the scene in front of us as well.

I hummed thoughtfully. “I don’t know yet. Probably nothing. Aside from sending letters of aid to both the coalition and Portisola.”

She nodded, whereas Seren looked confused and said, “Why to Portisola?”

“Because they don’t want their rival to get too comfortable,” I answered. “Honestly, in these kinds of situations, they are more reliable than the coalition.”

“Only because you make a habit of pissing them off,” Eweleanor corrected.

I shrugged nonchalantly. “Well, sure, but can you honestly say it would be more functional if I didn’t?”

She sighed heavily. “No, probably not.”

I shot her a smug look, before taking in the incoming army with disinterest.

“How are the both of you so calm about this?” Seren asked with no shortage of confusion. “We’re about to be attacked and you’re discussing it as if it were the weather.”

“My apologies, Miss Mac an Ghorta,” Eweleanor said. “I forget this is your first time, and that it can be more distressing than it needs to be. I assure you, we have things well in hand.”

“How?” my lovely girlfriend demanded.

“Magical shenanigans,” I explained unhelpfully, earning me a glare from her. “Once the village has been evacuated, we’ll throw up the defensive wards, and wait it all out.”

“That’s the plan?” she asked in exasperation, her jaw falling slack. “Waiting things out is your whole plan?!”

Both Eweleanor and I shrugged, as I answered, “Pretty much. I mean, we have a pretty strict non-aggressive policy in place, which might be one of the biggest reasons why we’re an independent city-state. Despite only being the school and a village.”

“Only because any aggression would automatically be associated with your past,” Eweleanor added. “Not that your presence and said past aren’t also part of the reason why we’re an independent city-state.”

“True,” I said with a nod. “Having a reputation does help.”

Seren stared at the both of us as if we’re crazy, before eventually sighing. “Okay, so we can just sit back and relax? Business as usual?”

“Not quite,” I said, as I felt Fluminix bump against my hip, causing me to reach down and give her head some gentle strokes. “Classes will be cancelled until the crisis is over, and all staff are put on alert and have to walk the walls to monitor the situation.”

“Just a safety precaution,” Eweleanor added, as Seren looked troubled by the idea of potentially having to serve on the frontlines. “The defensive ward is one of Morgana’s creation, and the school’s best kept secret.”

“And you’re going to explain to me how they work?” Seren asked leadingly.

I exchanged a look with Eweleanor, and at receiving a nod from her – just so I don’t have to take the responsibility – I said, “It’s an adaptive shield cast in a sphere from the enchantment’s centre, fed by six powerful spirits bound to obelisk carved with spirit-binding enchantments. Which is one of the wards secrets.

“The other is that, contrary to popular belief, the ward has three layers – though, only the third and last one is noticeable by any keen observer. The first two layers are detection layers. Each sending back data on the speed, direction, acceleration – or deceleration – core element, intent, amount of mana used, and other information that’s contained in a spell.

“Yes,” I answered, before the question could be raised. “Spells contain all the information that was put into them, if one looked close enough. Something not many people have the ability to do during combat, or even when casting outside of combat.

“Not even I’m capable of that.

“Anyway, the first two layers send the data back to the enchantment’s core. There the data from the first and second detection layers are compared to one another, and based on that the third and final layer is adjusted. But only right where the spell, arrow or any other projectile going to hit.

“Not that the third layer is easy to destroy without the detection layers,” I rounded off my explanation. “After all, the detection layers are placed right before the third layer, making even melee attacks useless against it.”

Fluminix placed her front feet on the banister and peeked over it to see what had been keeping our interest, whilst Seren gave me a look of incomprehension and Eweleanor turned around to leave.

“Before I forget,” the headmistress said, as she paused on her way out of my apartment to glance back at me. “Happy birthday.”

I snorted and gave her a sardonic smile. “Thanks. I hope you prepared me a present?”

She snorted and walked back inside my apartment, to leave us in favour of her duties. “Of course not.”

I clicked my tongue in feigned annoyance. “Damn…”

“Today’s your birthday?” Seren asked.

I turned my attention to her and nodded. “Today’s the autumn equinox, so yes, it is.”

“Happy birthday,” she said softly, before glancing back towards the approaching army and grimacing. “I suppose…”

I snorted a laugh and leaned on the banister. “Yeah, not exactly how I had hoped to celebrate it, but what can I do?”

“I’m gathering this happens often?” she asked carefully.

“Them sending an army in return for my aid? Or them sending it on my birthday?” I asked in return.

“Well, considering you’ve already answered the first, the second, obviously,” she answered with a faint smile.

“Ah,” I exclaimed as my gaze drifted back to the village, where the last of the villagers were leaving. “More often than not. My rewards do tend to be handed out on my birthdays, no matter when in the year I’ve aided them…”

“Sorry,” she said softly, as she joined me in staring out at the village and a silence fell over us. Not a bad one, just one that built towards an impending question.

“How old are you turning?” she asked after a long moment, expectantly breaking the silence.

“Two thousand one hundred and thirty,” I answered slowly, before turning to face her. “Hey, what do you say we go on a little trip together, and leave this whole mess behind?”

She snorted a little laugh, thinking I was joking. “Sure, let’s just leave an impending war zone and run off.”

“I’m serious,” I said. “Let’s go on a journey together to forget all of this. Just you, me and Fluminix.”

“You’re not kidding, are you?” she asked in surprise. “You really want to run off during all of this? Can you?”

I shrugged and leaned back against the banister, turning my back on the encroaching army. “Why not? I mean, it’s not like my presence is really necessary around here. And me leaving might actually speed things up. It’s me they’re after, after all, so if I’m no longer here, they have even less of a casus belli than they have now, so…”

She blinked at me a few times, before slowly nodding. “Okay.”

“Okay, as in you’re in? Or, okay, as in you understand my logic?” I asked, trying not to assume things.

“Okay, as in I trust you,” she said as a warm smile bloomed on her lips.

“Okay,” I said, gaining a smile of my own whilst pushing off the banister. “We should get packing then.”

“Where are you going?” she asked as she followed me inside.

“To meet the family,” I answered vaguely.

She nodded, before rounding on me in surprise. “Wait, what?”

It was time for Fluminix to meet her kin. And for me to meet Seren’s parents, as it was on the way anyway.