I left Cleo’s room, heading for the market street of Verdant. Lauren slithered at my side as we walked through the halls.

“Back to Ruby’s?” She asked, though I suspected she already knew the answer.

“Ruby said she’d get right to work on it when I handed her the gem yesterday. I can only hope that she’d already got it done.” As we got to the entrance to the palace, I looked out onto the busy street in front of the palace.

Lauren shook her head and grabbed my shoulder. “How about we try to be a little more discreet this time?” she asked, hope in her voice. “I’d rather not attract too much attention.”

“Alright, we’ll do it your way.” It was in my best interest.

Lauren gave me a victorious grin and grabbed a cloak from the entrance to the palace before throwing it over my shoulders. “I figured something like this would do you a world of good. Who knows, it might even keep you from sleeping with another dozen monster girls before we get back tonight.”

I gave her my best impression of being offended. “I’d never.” Though the thought was a pleasant one, I didn’t have time to please twelve whole women between now and then.

Lauren rolled her eyes at that, but shoved the cloak down around my shoulder. Though I didn’t love the idea of wearing this bulky cloak around the desert city, I agreed with her. It was probably best in order to keep the fuss my presence created to a minimum.

When I put the cloak on over Bubbles’ armor, Sylvia stayed under the hood wrapped around my back like a billowing cape of air. “Are you going to stay like that?” I asked, my air elemental.

“Being connected to master like this is best.” She declared from under my hood.

Lauren gave me a withering look, as if asking what the hell I’d done to all of these monster girls.

Sylvia caught the look and quickly defended me. “Don’t knock it until you try it. Master is the best I will ever have. In fact, he’s the best Cleo has ever had. That’s saying something.”

That earned an eye roll from the disbelieving blue lamia. Lauren was one of the many serpent girls that made up the city of Verdant. They seemed to be the most common monster girl in the desert oasis city. Though Lauren appeared to be some sort of sea serpent variety, with bright blue scales and black stripes that looked more at hope in blue water than on land. Her tail even ended with a flat tip that looked like it was for driving her through the water.

Though enough of her snake portion. Above the waste, she was a pale beauty clad in thin bands of metal armor that apparently identified her as a one honor guard for royalty. The armor seemed barely functional to me, but I’d been told the amount of skin she was willing to show in an area was a mark of her confidence and prowess. She held only a long glaive as we walked through the city streets.

“If you look at me like that, I’m going to think you’ll try to take me to bed.” She scowled. “But you already have your lovely Beatrix.”

“Variety is the spice of life. Don’t think I’m anywhere near done finding monster girls to love.” I laughed. Though Lauren wasn’t amused as I talked about finding more lovers.

“I guess I’m going to have to just take your word for it. No way I’m sharing like the rest.” She focused back on looking around as we walked.

“To each their own.” I shrugged and felt the weight of the heavy cloak on my shoulders more than ever.

Lauren poked at me. “Your voice is too deep. Why don’t you stay quiet until we read the jewelers?”

I at least gave a snort at my opinion of being asked to keep quiet. Again, I figured it was best to make her job easy and so I followed her request and we made our way to Ruby’s shop in comfortable silence. Bubbles must’ve been bored as she was trying to keep me and herself entertained beneath the suit of armor.

The jeweler’s shop door chimed as I pushed it open, but instead of Ruby, her daughter, who I’d had the displeasure of meeting the other day, was standing behind the display cases leaning on her arm as two other customers browser her wares.

Claire looked up and saw Lauren as we entered. “Is that the Pharaoh’s man?” She said loud enough for the other customers to turn and try to get a look at me.

Lauren scowled back at the young red dragon. “They are wearing a cloak for a damn reason. Who this is, isn’t any of your concern.”

“If it is him, I’m supposed to send you back to my mother. Or if you want to keep it a secret, you can wait out here.” Claire spat with a bad attitude.

Rolling my eyes, I filled down the hood and gave her my best smile despite my annoyance. “Then send me back. I’m ready for this ring.”

“Not done. You’re going to have to help her with it.” Claire lifted part of the counter to let me through.

I couldn’t help but notice a lamia in the store got one good look at me before darting out. Lauren caught the same thing over my shoulder, but didn’t move to do anything. If word got out, we’d have to deal with it later.

Either way, I could always fuck my way through all of Verdant, right?

On second thought, that would be a terrible idea. Even with my blessing, I wasn’t sure I wouldn’t end up a withered out husk from that much activity.

Claire didn’t abandon her post, instead just pointing to a door in the back.

Me and Lauren made ourselves at home as we walked into the back room of the jeweler’s shop.

I had expected a nice pristine white room with some advanced machinery. At least with the front of the shop, it had reminded me of my old world. But I should have known better. This shop was run by two dragons. Why the hell would they need that?

Ruby was sitting before a big stone forge, but without a bellow or fuel. Instead, she sat on the bench next to an anvil and the forge burned red hot with lingering flames as the tools closest to it glowed red hot from the heat as she cut off a breath of fire.

“What do you have there?” I asked, mostly to let Ruby know we were there.

The matronly dragon girl turned around, looking upset at being interrupted, before a flicker of recognition settled in her eyes. “Sam!” She shoot up from the force and wrapped me in a scorching hot hug.

I squealed like a roasted pit being put over the fire live. Bubble’s bubbled around me as she took the worst of it.

Ruby immediately backed off and Lauren was there, her glaive at the ready. “I’m so sorry. I was just too excited.”

The cloak that Lauren had given me was scorned and burning at the edges from Ruby’s hug. Of course, the dragon having been breathing her fire in front of the forge for who knows how long was hot enough to burn clothing on contact.

“I’ll grab a tincture from the cabinet.” She rushed away, but I tried to wave her off.

“Bubble’s took the worst of it and protected me from everything but minor burns underneath.” Those were even starting to heal from my own life sorcery. “I’m fine. That just hurt like a bitch. No need to waste it on me.”

Ruby shook her head. “No. I can’t be responsible for crippling Cleo’s man. If I harmed you in any way, she’d have my head.”

“I’m fine. I promise to defend you in front of Cleo if the need arises.”

Ruby looked at me, skepticism plain on her face before she let her hand drop and she confirmed with Lauren over my shoulder. “Alright.” She put the tincture back. “Then besides my excitement, let me show you what I’ve been up to.”

“I've been melting your gold down and purifying it with my fire.” She pulled out a stone cup filled with molten gold.

However, I realized the volume was far less than the gold I'd given her last night. "What happened to the rest of the gold?"

Ruby shook her head. “This is all of it. I purified it with dragon fire. It condenses the gold as well as giving it magical properties.”

I looked at the small cup of gold, slightly sad to see all of that hard earned money at the arena literally shrink before my eyes.

Ruby must've seen my reaction. “But while it shrinks in volume, multiplies and value,” she reassured me. “The time it takes for Dragon to convert Golden to Dragon's gold is not short. And my time is quite valuable.”

I gave her a guilty grin for doubting her. “Of course it's just hard to see the gold that I made the other day disappear.”

Ruby smirked. “It sounded like from the rumors going around that you would have no issue making that much gold with just another afternoon. After all, you are the talk of the town, many of the noble families are already hunting you.”

“Hunting me?” I asked.

“At least it's how I’d describe the fact that they have women running around trying to spot you with orders to capture you.” Ruby said.

Lauren swished her glaive in the air. “Let them try.”

“Enough about that. What about the ring?” I didn't much care about noble families of Verdant out to hunt me down. I figured monster girls would be doing things like that even I hadn't done what I’d done to Beatrix. After all, I was now Cleo's only man. That alone would create curiosity.

“The ring, right?” Ruby held out to molds. “I wanted to confirm these were the right size.”

I picked up one of her tools, a pair of what looked like calipers, and used it to size the mold and then my own finger. It was a perfect fit. I assumed to get me right, she’d do just as well with Cleo’s and hers, looked about right.

“They’re perfect. Am I about to watch the magic happen?”

Ruby smirked at my wording. “Yes. Would you be willing to give me a drop of your blood as well?” she asked.

I shrugged. Enchantments were complex craft, and I didn't question her need for my blood. I pricked my own finger and held it out for her.

She quickly grabbed a small mortar and pestle from her workbench and caught the blood in the small dish. I noticed in the dish already was a fine crystalline powder and I what it was with a raised eyebrow.

“I had extra since you gave me such a large crystal and decided to use it in setting the mold as well.”

I frowned at her in confusion, wouldn’t that make the gold set unevenly? But then again, I was no jeweler and decided to let her work her own magic.

She ground the blood into the powdered crystal. What I’d collected from Cleo’s tomb had been massive. Ruby had shaved quite a bit off in cutting the gemstone.

I notice on the workbench there was a large yet tasteful beautifully cut gem, the same crystalline clear blue as Cleo's heart crystal. I stepped over to inspect it, and Ruby confirmed my thoughts. “Yes, that will be the centerpiece. It is absolutely beautiful, and I'd already completed my work on it.”

I smiled at it, already imagining it set in the gold ring, and nodded, satisfied with Ruby's job.

Ruby took the mortar and pestle that was mixed of my blood and powder from Cleo's crystal. She sprinkled it into the cup of molten gold, chanting a few words in a guttural, slithering language that I didn't understand.

That only lasted a few minutes before she set the molds up in her furnace and quickly poured gold for each of the rings.

“I have extra gold. What would you like me to do with it?” she asked. I looked at the cup and how much there was. “I’m not sure. Is there anything you would recommend?” I asked.

She looked at it and then over at me and my slime armored body. “If your armor would be so willing, I can make a small plate of it for her to use as a heart guard in that armor.”

“Is Dragon gold that strong?” I didn’t think of gold as reasonable armor.

She nodded excitedly and even Lauren spoke up. “Not only is it condensed gold, and many times stronger than actual gold, it is one of the best things to place an enchantment on. It certainly stronger than steel as well as having magical absorption properties if not enchanted.”

That sounded fantastic. “Then I'll take a plate of it and I'll hold over my heart just as Cleo's heart crystal once protected hers.”

Both girls gave a happy sigh at the romantic gesture and a mouthpiece opened up on my chest. “Absolutely. I would love to hold guard over his heart. I will protect master with my life.”

She poured out the rest of the cup in a thin, shallow bowl as it barely coated the bottom. Then she pulled the molds and the bowl out of the furnace before she wrapped her hand around each.

I could see the waves of heat coming off of those. The way she handled them with her bare claws was impressive. What was more impressive was watching that heat get siphoned off into Ruby.

I watched in awe as the red dragon seemed to absorb the heat and quickly solidify the metal in each of the molds. I wondered if there was any concern with cooling this too quickly. But then again, Ruby was the expert in dragon gold, and the industrial use of magic was beyond my simple understanding of metallurgy.

“This won't take long at all.” She reassured me as she did the same process with the other two molds. Quickly cooling each of them she pulled the piece out of the bowl and handed it to me or rather to bubbles who sent out a tentacle of slime to grab it and suck and the small plate of dragon gold filled with the dust of Cleo's heart stone.

I'd gotten a glimpse of the metal before bubbles pulled inside. It was a rich gold color with just a slight hint of red from my blood, but sparkling with the blue crystals of Cleo's heart crystal.

Next she cracked open the two molds, and they were very much the same rich gold with a hint of red and sparkles of blue throughout. She plucked out both red hot rings and held them up in the air as she circled them around in her fingers, checking for imperfections.

Of course, they were rough coming out of the mold and she used quick swipes with her draconic claws to carve away any rough edges and smooth out the two rings.

It was a marvel to watch the dragon jeweler work.

She swiftly made the two rings and, with her claws and a few applications of dragon fire, set the cut heart stone within one of them.

“Care to give yours a try?” She held out my ring.

I slipped it on. It was a perfect, comfortable fit and, knowing what I now knew about Dragon gold, I expected it would serve to guard my hand as well.

While I admired the ring, Ruby enchanted Cleo's further.

“What exactly are these rings supposed to do?” I asked the dragon as she worked.

“They are to connect you and Cleo. I used a simple spell of empathy between the two of them to connect your hearts and so you may understand each other on a deeper level. I have also enchanted Cleo's heart stone to connect with that plate of Dragon gold waiting above your heart. It is just a hope, but you two should be able to find each other anywhere in the world.”

It was romantic, and I would never lose my Cleo or her me if it worked. I felt it was the perfect gift that would be able that we would be able to understand each other and know that we were still dedicated leagues apart. One of these days, I’d have to return to the kingdom of Rindall.

I thanked Ruby as she wrapped them both up. But as we stepped out of the back room, a small gathering of lamia filled her shop and put me on edge.

Ruby corralled a deep rumble that shouldn't have come from the matronly woman.

“What is the meaning of this?”

But when I saw Apep slither forward, I suddenly knew there was a problem.

Apep looked at me and then at Ruby and held her hands up. "I am not here to cause trouble. In fact, I'm here for something that our colonel wants.”

That had my curiosity. “What's wrong?”

Apep examined me with those silver snake eyes. Her pale purple skin and rich, dark silver hair cascaded down her back around the massive cobra hood over her shoulders. “We have found the last of your men, but this one has caused trouble. He doesn't believe we were there to protect him and send him home. He’s put himself in a situation where we can't remove him without harming him.”

It only took me a moment to imagine the situation that the soldier must have been in. Certainly, being returned to the fort at Kopesh was not something he imagined was going to happen. It was no wonder that he had suspicions.

“I'm assuming you want me to come help you get him.”

Apep nodded. “That's why we've come to get you.”

Ruby gave me and Apep a wary glance before she handed me the two rings bubbles of course suck them into her and I was starting to enjoy the slime's ability to carry all of my things.

“Be careful.”

“Always, plus I have Lauren with me.” I pointed to my lamia appointed guard from Cleo.

Ruby fixed Apep with the glare. “I made these for Cleo and I’d hate for my gifts to not be delivered.”

Apep laughed. “Don't worry, I'll send someone to the palace. It is no problem. I send messages to Cleo all day long.”

I could see Ruby's concern, but in the grand scheme of things, I wasn't so worried about Apep. Cleo clearly kept her on a tight leash, and I had several layers of security here in the city.

Last of which was my own prowess, and I felt comfortable being able to take the cobra queen.

“Don't worry Ruby, I'll be fine.”

I left with Lauren in tow as we followed Apep to where one of my men was apparently lost and ready to come home.