Eric had been staring down at the floor when he heard his name being called out. "Huuu..!!" He has not slept the whole night, preparing for this situation. Yet, when it came to declaring their fates, he can't help but get cold feet. That's when a soft hand wrapped around his own. "Everything will be okay, Eric. Go ahead, people need you."

He never told her about it explicitly. Even so, over the past decade, Nana had figured out how much seriously her husband took this job of a leader. It didn't matter to him, how small his dominion was. As long as there was even a single person dependent on him, Eric will never show his back on him.

She saw his eyes regain focus. Getting closer to him, she kissed the man she loved dearly on his lips. "They are waiting." Eric nodded and got up. He saw Lyod looking at him. Placing his hands on his shoulders, he muttered in a low voice. "Thanks, master Lyod. I will take care of the rest." The old man only smiled and returned to his seat. 

Eric's eyes swept over the large crowd gathered in front of him. "Today, I declare a day of mourning, for those who left us." His voice was even louder than Lyod's, filled with confidence. As expected, the public broke into the debate once again. Did they lose an important personality?

Most of them had noticed that the milk granny was not present in her seat. It might be her who met her end somehow, that's what was going on in the minds of everyone. Only Ruby had gears glaze over her eyes. Ryu moved closer to her, wrapping his hands around her waist. 

Amelia was the first one to their weird behavior. Next moment the entire family knew that something was wrong with the two individuals. But before they could speak up, Eric's voice cut them over. "It pains me to inform all of you that this town lost two of its brave men in the plantation, last week. They fought to protect their friends yet they were overwhelmed by the forces of evil." 

Forces of evil? This was the first time they came across such a term. Were they beastmen? That didn't make any sense. None of them had remained alive had those freaks managed to breach the borders, not to mention they reached the center of their town.

Eric felt the growing unrest among his people. "I will take this opportunity to let everyone know that the food you eat has a price to pay. Each day we fight against those evil forces to safeguard our trees." 

The reputation Eric had built over the years made sure that people awaited his further words, before reaching any conclusions. "They can tear the fabric of space. Constantly in search of the life force of our tree. Once they find the location, they begin a never-ending barrage against the plantation, in order to suck all the life force inside the plants." 

The life of the people outside of their town was known to everyone. The only thing that stopped them from having the same fate as those unfortunate souls was their access to these resources that provided them enough nutrients to live a fulfilling life. Hence, it wasn't hard to imagine the amount of significance the fruit trees held in their hearts. 

If something was after their trees, it meant they were after their lives. There was no count of how many people will lose their lives if they lost access to the fruits. Eric had always been a serious personality. No one will joke over such a concerning matter. Added to that, a percentage of their population had already heard some kind of rumors about this. All these factors combined, meant no one was in doubt about the credibility of the matter.

"It's the same at all places. No place is safe from them. All the cities that have a sizable size of plantation had become infested with these black vines that act as a harbinger of death and destruction. The only way to defeat them is to be in a constant struggle against them. Over the years we kept the matter under wraps since the casualties we received in the fight never included a death."

"Yet, this time around we lost two young men and I wasn't even able to recover their bodies. The sense of guilt overwhelmed my consciousness and I can't keep this matter a secret anymore. Especially not when it had begun to cost us the lives of our dear ones." His speech was passionate, filling the hearts of the men and women around with a sense of empathy.

In the crowd, Amelia was not able to stop her own tears from filling her eyes. Eric didn't need to make it any more clearer. James was more with them. More than the loss of the man, she was worried about her child. It had only been a year since Ruby married the boy. Losing her husband right after she gave birth to their child, can it get any worse than this? Suna too had come forth in o console the weeping woman.

Ryu stepped back, letting the ladies handle Ruby for a while. "You knew it?" Jeff had his hands on his shoulders. Ryder and Kyro too stared at his face, awaiting his answer. Sighing in response he didn't hide anything from them. "Grandma told me, yesterday night." Jeff closed his eyes, not saying anything else. 

"Right now as the leader of Korua, I call upon you to aid your brethren in this fight of our survival. Are you with me?" "YESSS!!" Eric himself didn't know he had such potential. The masses were aroused to such extent that their unanimous voice sent tremors through the grounds. 

Nana gazed over the wide back of her husband, proud of his achievements. "That kid.. he should have been here. I am sure he would have never imagined his father can be this amazing." Jim didn't bother joining the charade. He already knew what they were up against and it was much more beneficial for him to use his time to train than to take part in such events. 

*Clap* *Clap* Amid the cheers of the crowd a soft sound of clapping reverberated throughout the town hall. Despite the claps not being loud, its moments seemed to sweep over the jarring voices of the people below. 

A pressure befell the crowd. It was not uncomfortable, rather commanded an authority. Above their heads, a woman in a white dress levitated towards the stage. "I think I can say on behalf of the crowd, chief. You have our vote of confidence." 

Eric smiled at the figure that landed right ahead of him. "It's an honor, Miss Emily." As a show of respect, he put his right knee to the ground. Had it not been for her, he might have never found the courage to come clean to his people. 

Fortunately, Emily was going the take care of any backlash that can come his way from the Empire or the royal family. Otherwise, a lone man like himself can only dream to oppose a colossal, known as the Cylon Empire. There were sure to be repercussions of his speech, after all, Korua had been the first town in the human realm that had brought the matter of Krypto vines to light.

"You did well, Mr. Eric. Although, I was not needed here after you handled the situation with such perfection, I wasn't able to stop myself to show up and encourage you." Eric can tell that it was her way to point out to the masses that he had her approval.

There were not many leaders who get got approval from a Grand Magus. The honor filled his heart with immense gratitude for the older lady. "Please raise your head." Eric didn't decline her offer, standing beside her, facing the crowd. "Can we have a round of applause for the chief?" 

Her aura was such that people were filled with renewed vigor and a massive round of claps rang in the hall. What force of evil? As long as there was a Grand Magus in the ranks of a human, they can't lose hope. After all, it's always been the grand mages, that maintained an equilibrium with the beastmen alliance for such long periods.

Lyod took over as Eric brought Emily back to sit beside himself. The old man called out the names of the men who lost their lives and narrated the event in more detail for the people to have a better idea as to what they were dealing with. After a few more minutes the crowd began dispersing at Lyod's behest. Emily was the next one to take her to leave, followed by other dignitaries from the nobility. 

"Take care of sister, mom. You guys can leave, I will see you at home." Ryu kissed his sister's forehead before walking against the flow of the crowd. Someone had called onto him and he calmly forced his way out. Amelia and others did not stop him, too busy caring for their poor girl. 

Sometime later Ryu walked inside the chief's estate and as he had expected the guards did not stop him, rather they showed him the way. Walking for some distance he saw a lady waiting for him in one of the courtyards. "Took you long enough, peasant boy." 

Nana didn't wait for his reply, turning around and walking inside the attached house. The boy smiled bitterly but followed her nonetheless. The small house only had a single room with a bed. The woman sat at one edge, calling him over to take a seat beside her.

Not saying anything Ryu wrapped his hands around her waist and sat next to her. Nana was not expecting him to be this intimate as a healthy blush surfaced on her cheeks. "I am not your momma, kid. Maintain some dignity." 

Her words seemed to be falling on deaf ears as the boy ignored all her pleas, holding her even tighter in his arms. "Remove your clothes." She was left befuddled by such shameless requests. "Ahem.. brat... I didn't call you here to do that. I was just a bit concerned about your affairs, that's all... Now can you.. what are you staring at?" 

His deep eyes remained unmoving. For a change, this time he didn't have the same curious and mischief-filled gaze. Rather it was filled with serenity. Her heart jerked at the realization. Did he experience something bad? She had never seen him this serious. In fact, kids his age should not have eyes like these. 

"Okay, okay... I am doing it. No stop glaring at me like that." Feigning annoyance she got up and removed all her clothes. Thinking that the boy was interested in releasing some steam, she didn't stop there, helping him get off his clothes too. 

However, he was completely flaccid down there, leaving her confused. "What do you... ahh.." He suddenly took hold of her arm and dragged her to sit on his lap. His head rested to the side of her chest. "Stay like this, Nana." 

She had not planned the events to go like this. In truth, she truly just wanted to talk to the boy. He just lost his brother-in-law, which might affect him. She planned to help him out. Yet, when he called her by her name, her face was completely clouded over by shame. 

"What's the matter? If you want then I can listen to it." She offered, but the boy kept holding onto her in the same position not moving an inch. Time passed and she decided against arguing any further. It's better to wait and let him rest. She can feel his steady heartbeats against her back as heats from their bodies got exchanged.