Flying away on Mitena, I think back to last night and all of the fucking prep work that was needed. I'm glad I reached them before they got deeper in and spread out.

With a bag of enchanted cores, I had to sneak around the entire camp and leave the cores. I would use earth magic to lightly cover them just enough to hide them. Thankfully, they could have a bit of space between, but it was still a shit ton of work.

Then I had to choose my stage to place the core for the liquefaction trap. I could harden the ground myself, at least enough for the play, but making it just wet enough to sink into without too much or too little is definitely a Navi trick. Too wet, and it's just water. Too dry, and they don't sink.

I placed some explosive cores along the fire wall, but they were more like a decent sized firecracker you can get on the Fourth of July than a deadly weapon. They made a loud noise, but wouldn't do much damage. The noise was all I needed, though. I also placed the cores enchanted with water by the fire cores for the steam effect. Something that dramatic was, of course, Navi's touch.

Then lure them to the trap, do my quick change with the throne in my bag, and have Mitena look scary as fuck. Her being intimidating was probably the easiest out of all of this. Being that I have a title to lower intimidation, I'm almost positive dragons have some sort of skill or something. Maybe not passive, since Anastasia is fine around her. Who knows.

I pat the dragon on her neck and focus my voice towards her head to be heard over the wind. "You did a good job, Mitena. Let's find a spot to land and take a nap."

"Groewell." 

How fucking hypocritical was that speech? Well, I guess it's more ironic than hypocritical. Considering it was coming from me, who killed a lot of them, will kill innocents, and is lying right to their face, trying to talk to them about shit like morals. 

At the very least, I know what I did and will own it. I just won't announce it and will always deny it was me. Even so, in my heart and mind I'm not trying to fool myself or make excuses. Yup, that sounds stupid. I'm just a piece of shit sometimes.

Either way, I doubt those elves will cause many problems. I just hope the other elves leave them alone. One side controlled by religion, one by fear. Fuck. There's so much that can go wrong with that. Zahra better be on the top of her game with her elves. 

The flight to these elves took three days on Mitena, so it'll take three days to get back home. I'm just glad that, like us, they went straight north. Still took a day of flying high to spot them and track them down.

After a boring and uneventful flight, we finally made it home. Mitena is not nearly as comfortable to lean back on as Talon, even though I'm wearing armor, so I used my own pillow. We landed in the garden where we took off from.

I reached out to my little girl as soon as we stopped. (Anastasia, we're home.)

(Mommy Lia!)

Before I could even get the saddle off of Mitena, Anastasia burst through the door and dove through the air, hugging me and then Mitena. Yup, definitely picking up the fairy hug-tackle habit. Ailine was next through the door with Talon right behind her.

(Home! Home!) the hippogryph… Squawked? Parroted? I still don't know how to fucking describe it.

"Yes, we're home, Talon." I walked over and ruffled her feathers.

"How did it go, Lia?" Ailine asked.

"Well, I'm pretty sure more than a few people pissed themselves. I definitely got the message across, and when they get here they'll probably be at Zahra's feet."

"Oh! Mommy Lia!" Anastasia hollers, bringing my attention back to her. "You should turn Degare into a vampire!"

I squatted down to her level. "And why is that?"

"While you and Mitena were gone, he finally stopped running away from me! We were able to draw, play tag, play hide-and-seek, and he showed me all the best places to hide! If it wasn't for sense presence, I would've never found him!"

"You had fun playing with him then?" I asked.

"Yeah! A lot of fun!" Anastasia sad while holding her arms wide. "He said you would only turn him into one if I asked you too. Please, can you turn him into a vampire?"

Gah! Puppy dog eyes! My heart! I can't handle it!

"I'll have to see, Anastasia." I said, still uncertain. "If I decide to do it, I'll tell you. Alright?"

"Yes! Please do it, Mommy Lia!"

I got another hug from her before she went back to telling Mitena about everything that happened since we were gone.

I stood back up and took Ailine's hand as we watched over our daughter and family monsters. "She really had fun with the brat, Ailine?"

"She did. They played together almost the entire time you were gone."

Hmm… Damn kid. Well, Anastasia enjoyed herself and wasn't lonely while I was gone with Mitena. I'll give him a break this time.

Heading inside, I went to the lab to check on Navi and tell her in person about her enchantments. They really did work well. The potential uses for them is staggering. Having enchantments on, and powered by, a core and able to be chained with others in a certain distance. Scary.

"Hey, Navi." I said while walking into the lab.

"Ah! A narwhal!" she yelled, feigning surprise. "Oh, it's just you. Welcome back! You do your super scary bit?"

"Yeah. Everything went well. Bunch of scared elves should be making their way here now. Even if they don't and just decide to run and hide in the jungle, the message should've gotten through that they lost and could be killed at any time."

"Oh, man. I wish I could have seen that! A ring of fire surrounding them, a demon lord and her dragon! Ooo gives me chills! Did they step into the liquefaction trap?" Navi asked.

"Yeah, they were so busy watching me, they didn't even notice it until they sunk in," I said. "I hardened only the top layer, but the suction of their feet being stuck would make it harder for them to yank their feet out than just easing them out. They weren't in any state of mind to think, though. I also did the flaming armor thing. Mitena's roar with wings out and a flame blast did a number as well."

"Ahh! I want to see people cower to all of that!" Navi pulls on her hair then slumps her shoulders. "This stinks. Well, on another note, I looked at the stockpile of animals my girls have been growing and the veggies and grain your wifey has collected. I think you might actually make it out of this refugee crisis."

"That's good," I said. "I knew tripling our population at once would be tough. Before we attack the Empire, we should probably get a bigger stockpile. We'll have the hands now, with all the elves, to turn the entire area around the walls into fields.

"We still need to make a plan on mining that other area and rebuilding its castle and town. You said it was a gold mine?" I asked.

"That's just because that's what most people care about. It's actually super weird! Along with gold ore, there were crates of silver and copper," Navi said. "I even had a blacksmith confirm it."

"From the sounds of it, a mine like that is way too convenient to have high quantities of all three of those."

"Right? Although, is this the first time the gods have messed with the science we know from Earth?" Navi flew over to the table and sat down, lazily swinging her legs..

"I guess not," I said. "That does make it incredibly convenient though. At this point, let's just write it off as gods fucking with things and move on."

"Right? Any idea how we're doing on security?" Navi asked.

I leaned on a table with my arms crossed. "I was going to check with James on that next. See if the few elven soldiers we have now can get integrated into patrols. What about your farming equipment?"

"That!" Navi jumped up excitedly. "When I showed them the prototypes, they loved it so much they said to just straight up skip using our fields as a test. It's not nearly as good as modern machinery, but compared to people whacking at wheat with a scythe? 

"Blacksmiths and mages are working on making the actual things. They ended up with the horse drawn cultivator, seed drill, and harvester. Once they're done and get fully into production, we should see the amount of crops we grow increase significantly. Same with the amount of land one team can handle! That alone should grow exponentially! We'll definitely need to expand the farms!"

"Damn. Good job, Navi. I'm going to go check on James and the security."

"Well, get to it! I'm busy finding the question to the answer of forty-two, so you'll know where I'll be."

Leaving the crazy fairy, I made my way to the training grounds and barracks. There were only a few soldiers, and they pointed me to the housing construction to find James. After arriving there, I saw many of the soldiers. Humans, dwarves, and elves, all working in groups on the housing.

"Thinking of going into construction, Captain Remmington?" I asked as I walked up behind him.

"Greetings, Your Majesty." He said with a salute. "You would be surprised how being forced to work together will bring soldiers together. After they butt heads a few times, of course."

I always hated team projects back on Earth. As long as there was an objective and someone to kick others into line, they ended up not being too overly terrible. It definitely forced cooperation, that's for sure.

"I see. It certainly helps break the ice for the different groups. I was checking to see how well the security measures are coming along."

"To be honest, I believe we will be short," he said a little reluctantly. "From what I expect, unless the new residents are model citizens, we will be running a skeleton crew and still lowering patrols in the more established sections."

Fuck. Well, there isn't much we can do about our numbers either. I refuse to have under-trained soldiers who might go on a power trip or be a bit stab happy. 

"Keep up the good work, James."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Sara should be in the dungeon with Ailine collecting items. I guess I can go play with Anastasia for the time being. Fuck. I feel like a lazy ass sometimes, but I have people in the places they're needed. Am I slowly becoming a figurehead? At this point with all of the different projects, they have their own flow. If I just jumped in, I would throw them all off. I also can't go to the Abyssal Dungeon since Ailine has my ring. Maybe Navi can make more?

I reached out to check. (Hey, Navi. Think you can make any more access rings to the teleportation platform?)

(Yeah, sure thing. I'll add it to the list,) she distractedly replied. Must be working on something.

Making my way back to the castle, I slowed down and looked around. Wide and clean streets, people enjoying their day, people selling food or items. Elden did a damn good job of organizing all of this.

Once I entered the castle, I heard Anastasia giggling. Activating all of my stealth, I slinked towards the sound to try to see what's up. What I end up seeing is Anastasia and Mitena, playing with Degare as Steph watches with a warm smile. 

The brat is on all fours and growling, chasing the little girl and dragon around the large room. Anastasia is cracking up while Mitena is acting like a dog play-fighting. Fuck, the kid has some stones. Even for me, a dragon play-fighting is pretty intense. One wrong move and a claw or tooth has your insides spilling out. Fuck. Watching the scene, I can't help but curse. Even when we try to play with her as much as possible, she's still a kid and benefits from playing with other kids. 

In spite of that, what kid is so dumb that they'll play with a princess and her protective, scary fucking dragon guardian? They'd have to be an absolute idiot. Dammit.

At the very least, he seems to be friend-zoning himself pretty well. Some small part deep inside of me that I'm smashing with a sledgehammer is even rooting for the fucking kid. Like Ailine said, he doesn't seem like a bad kid. Also, when did he grow on Mitena? Weren't you supposed to keep gnats away? Fuck, I can be such a pushover sometimes.

Quietly sulking away, I go to the art room and pass some time drawing. I didn't want to disturb Anastasia when she was having so much fun.

While sitting in the art room, I try to get some of my thoughts in order while I absentmindedly draw. I hate the fact that I'm even considering turning Degare into a vampire. He's just a child. I don't think there's any truly justifiable reason to trap him inside of a child's body for the rest of his life. Hell, he may want it now, but what about in ten years, a hundred years, or a thousand years? This is a choice of his that will last longer than I think he realizes.

Although, isn't it stupid that I'm worrying so much about this? How many people have I killed and taken away their future? Degare would be immortal, not invincible. If he ever wants to die someday, I can still kill him. It's really only his body that'll be unchanging. Typically people don't get the chance to choose if they will be tall, short, or seen as handsome or ugly by society. He'll still get smarter, hopefully, and be able to do anything else he wants. Well, besides getting a boner, but I'm not too sad about that. If anything, that's a reason for me to change him now. 

What the fuck is someone like me doing thinking about ethics? Isn't it worse to kill people than to make a kid a vampire? Yet, why does it bother me this much? Along with Degare, another topic plagued my mind.

What'll be my job once my task is complete? I delegated any duties that I would otherwise have had to others. Will my days end up being like this? Wandering around the city and the castle looking for things to do? Isn't this what I wanted when I delegated? I reached a place where I don't have to be bothered by the mundane day-to-day rigmarole.

I want people in place so I don't have to do things, but at the same time I want to do something. So contradictory. Is there something I want to do? All I want is to live with Ailine and Anastasia, but they both have their own lives. Just like tonight, Anastasia will have times she wants to spend with others.

Have I become analogous to a pet, with their life revolving around others? Isn't that fucking pitiful? However, don't most people have lives revolving around others in some way besides those that are extremely selfish? I have the hobby of drawing or painting, but without a truly defined goal, I feel like I'll just get bored after a while. Is that another curse of being immortal? That one day, I'll have done everything I want to do, and essentially be left with watching reruns of Friends or Seinfeld all night?

That's probably why some rulers or people in higher positions fall to their vices. If everything runs regardless of your interference, and you're only needed to point the direction for the ship, What do you do with your time? What good is all of my power when it isn't needed?

Ideals without power to back them up are just dreams. Power without ideals or direction is pointless and dangerous. What direction will I take for the next ten years? What about one hundred, or one thousand years? What do I want Midnight to look like? Will advancements stagnate? 

Isn't this world eventually doomed, no matter what I do? With two races that are immortal, if we increase in numbers slowly, we'll eventually outnumber everything else given time. Additionally, once all of this war is over, won't the races continue to increase in numbers, eventually leading to a resource shortage? If they overpopulated, wars would once again commence as they fight for a scarce resource. Would they just fight until their numbers decrease to a level where scarcity isn't an issue again? 

Would the vampires join the battle royale? Needing blood, we aren't necessarily immune to a shortage, although we can fully sustain ourselves with a dungeon if it isn't overtaxed. It's also a bit odd. All of the vampires today have pretty much abandoned being nocturnal. Relying on shadow cloaks when going out. It's whatever, but just weird and seems unnatural.

Along with these, what was the reason Chaos and Order chose me to come here? Honestly, with a well thought out plan, gear from beating the dungeon, and some ingenuity, Destroying the Empire isn't going to be extremely difficult. But why make me a woman and why a Vampire? Yes, we're stronger, better at magic, etc. However, fairies are already about the most OP race there is now. Why not make me a fairy? Why me? Yes, I can use all the types of magic, but is that really enough of a reason? I feel like I'm missing something or that the entire story isn't being told to me.

I'm not sure how long I spent wandering the jumbled mess of threads that comprise my brain. I'm not even sure if I came to a conclusion on any of my philosophical, ethical, enigmatic or paradoxical questions. Do any of them have an answer? 

By the time evening was rolling around, I got a message I was halfway expecting to come sooner or later.

Sara spoke telepathically. (Your Majesty. Are you free for Steph and I to come talk to you?)

(Of course, Sara. I'll meet you both in the main parlor,) I said.

I got up from the table, leaving the drawing of a brightly smiling Anastasia and Ailine on it. Walking into the room, Steph and Sara were both sitting and stood when they saw me. Damn formalities. Fucking shit. Even when I've told them to drop it when it's just all of us around, they both insist on it.

Waving it away lightly, they sat on a couch and I sat in the chair across from them. They were holding hands with excited and nervous faces.

"What was it you both wanted to talk about?" And why do I feel like a dad being asked permission to marry his daughter? 

Steph answered, "You see, Your Majesty. Sara and I would like to get married and we would like your blessing."

Wow. The feel of the situation wasn't that far off. I can pretty much see where this is going to go, but let's go through the lines, anyway.

"You both have it. You're both my friends, so I'm happy for you," I said

They smiled a bit wider and Steph continued. "Thank you! There was another thing with it. I never had a last name, and Sara doesn't want to keep hers. We would like it if you could give me a last name that Sara could then take."

Aaaand I didn't see that one coming. Fuck! I hate naming.

"Wouldn't you be able to give yourself a last name?" I asked with hope that I might be able to weasel my way out.

"I could, but both of us talked, and as the person who rescued us, turned us into vampires, as well as our Queen, we would like it if it came from you." Steph looked at me with pleading eyes.

Dammit. Can't say no when she asks so sincerely… What name to give… Oh! That might be good.

"Then how about the last name Thibodeaux," I offered.

They both spent a few seconds trying the name with theirs and with each other's. I even heard a very quiet 'Degare Thibodeaux' in there. Yup. Predictable directions being predictable.

After another minute, they looked at each other, smiled, and nodded.

Steph grinned excitedly. "We love it! Thank you, Your Majesty. I will be Stephanie Thibodeaux from now on!"

"When are you going to say your vows?" I asked. "I'm sure Ailine, Navi, Anastasia, and the fairies would like to be there."

"We were actually thinking about tomorrow night." Steph's smile became both excited and anxious.

"That sounds great!" I said. "Just let us know and we'll all be there. Use whatever you want from any of the big bags or the castle."

Sara said, "Thank you, Your Majesty… There is one other thing..."

Are we finally going to get to the main discussion?

"What is it, Sara?" I asked.

Sara took a breath. "Steph and I have talked about it for a while. We would both like to adopt Degare and ask you to turn him into a vampire. We have both come to love him as a son, and would like to officially become a family."

There it is.

"Honestly, I was wondering if that would happen," I said. "You two are always looking after him. I can tell by your looks directed at the boy that you both care about him. Have you told him the repercussions for becoming a vampire? That he will never grow from a child's body? He will have to watch as everyone that isn't a vampire or fairy grows old and dies?"

Sara nodded resolutely. "We've explained it all to him as you did to Steph and myself. He still wishes to be turned. He has been playing more with Princess Anastasia, and, if we may, I think it would be good for her to have a vampire friend her own age."

I sighed and leaned back in the chair. "I've been thinking about it a lot since he came up to me, pointed and yelled at me, demanded me to turn him."

Sara let out a groan and looked up to the ceiling with a hand over her face. "Oh, Degare…"

With as formal as she acts when we aren't fighting, I could see Degare getting hollered at for that. Ha. Take that, boy.

"It's fine, it's fine," I halfheartedly tried to reassure her. "He's full of bluster to hide his insecurities and tries to puff up when frightened. I'll admit. He's a brat, but not a bad kid, and Anastasia has been enjoying playing with him. Well, as questionable as turning a child into a vampire is, it's his life. How about after the wedding tomorrow he can be turned?"

""Yes! Please do, Your Majesty!""

Did they practice synching up their response like that? Well, whatever. 

"Alright, that's settled then. I'm sure you two have plenty to prepare and talk about, so I'll leave you to it. Have a good night you two."

""Goodnight, Your Majesty.""

They had to have practiced or something, right? 

Making my way from the parlor, I ignored the little boy who I sensed has been eavesdropping from behind the corner during the entire conversation. If Sara missed him being here the entire time, her detection skills are getting rusty or her mind was just too preoccupied. 

I muttered quietly to myself, "Honestly, the kid could probably make a pretty good protagonist."

Street rat, to bandit bitch, to friend of a princess. Like a fantasy-medieval, pseudo-Aladdin, pseudo-Tarzan that'll never be old enough for his voice to drop. Maybe that's why I'm alright turning him? Not sure how I'd feel if both Anastasia and Degare were, say, sixteen or something with fucking hormones raging. Would a vampire teen eternally have hormones? Whatever. It's not an issue, thankfully. Thank the gods they're kids and not teens.

The wedding the next evening was an enjoyable affair. I was at a table with Ailine, Anastasia, and the four fairies. We were friends with Sara and Steph, and fought together for a long time, but I wouldn't have called us besties or anything. 

I always knew they both had their own lives outside of work or the tasks I gave them. They do both pull a wage since we aren't dungeon diving anymore. 

Looking around really hit this home. I didn't know most of the people here. There weren't a lot of guests, maybe twenty max, but I think at least two might be people I've met? What were their names? Right! Beth and Claire. They came on that first bandit mission and are on Sara's team. I think another might be a woman that was together in the wagon during the rescue, but I can't really remember.

The maids that I still don't know the names of are here casually as well. I should probably make more of an effort, but whatever. They're actually really good at their jobs, just slipping in and out of places doing their work without disturbing anyone as much as possible. 

Maybe I should train them to be assassins. That would be pretty standard for something like this… Nah. Too troublesome. Who would I even need to have assassinated that I couldn't just kill myself?

"This is a nice gathering," Ailine said, breaking me out of my thoughts.

"It is, Ailine. I'm glad we could do this for them," I said while lightly squeezing her hand.

"Me too, Lia. I love you."

"I love you too, Ailine."

"And I love both of you, Mommy Lia, Mommy Ailine!" Anastasia excitedly adds.

We watched as the two women spent a while greeting everyone, thanking them for coming, and chit-chatting. We specifically asked to not be formally greeted and just attend as friends of the brides, that way we weren't constantly being pestered with stupid formalities. 

Degare was in nicer clothes and always underfoot. The awkward kid didn't seem comfortable with all the attention or the fancy clothes. He even had a cowlick on top of his head. Sara licked her hand and tried to pat it down as he embarrassingly swatted her hand away. Turning in a huff while blushing but trying to look annoyed. Is this kid a tsundere? Nah, just embarrassed at having unfamiliar emotions, most likely.

Then my first view of an actual Erald wedding began as the two of them went up on a dais with Degare on the front row.

While holding hands and looking at each other, Steph said, "Sara. I fell in love with you, and you accepted me in your heart. I love you so much and will always be by your side. Will you marry me, Stephanie Thibodeaux?"

Sara then said, "Steph. You showed me how to love again and I can't imagine my life without you. I will always protect you with everything I have. I can't wait to be married to you. I love you and will gladly become Sara Thibodeaux."

With that, they kissed and everyone cheered and stood while clapping. Wait. That really was it? Fuck, weddings here really are super laid back. We join in clapping as they break the kiss and turn towards everyone with bright smiles. 

Steph addresses the crowd. "Everyone! We have one more announcement to make! Degare, come up here—alright. Sara and I are adopting Degare as our son. Degare? Would you become Degare Thibodeaux and allow us to be your mothers?"

Kid is red as a tomato and can't look anyone in the eyes as he fidgets with his hands and shuffles his feet. "Uh. Um. Yeah... Yes, please."

Another loud cheer from the crowd as both women bend down and hug him, tears in the eyes of all three as they say a few words only they can hear. What a charming little scene.

They break apart with two large smiles from the women and an embarrassed boy who can't help but leak a smile. After a while of talking to and sending the other guests off, they made their way over here.

"Congratulations, Degare!" Anastasia tackle-hugs the boy with her stat enhanced strength. 

Oi! You're going to break him! Degare would probably be more excited about being hugged if he wasn't trying to stay alive. Before I can jump in to peel her off, the fairies all tackle the pair, then tackle the women. Shouting out a cacophony of congratulations and compliments all the while. Fuck, they're like tiny cannonballs launching from person to person.

Sara and Steph are just laughing good naturedly, but Degare is looking like he's about to pop so I should probably stop this… or maybe… nah, I'll stop it. Anastasia killing her first friend by accident wouldn't be good for her.

"Anastasia, let him breathe," I said while gently patting her shoulder.

"Hmm? Oh! I'm sorry, Degare! I was just so excited!" She immediately releases him when she sees his current state.

*Cough, cough* "I'm." *Wheeze, cough* "Fine." *Cough, cough*

Yeah, kid. Stat strength is no joke. Take five.

After the fairies break away from pushing the newlyweds to the floor, Ailine and I help them up and give our own congratulations.

"Now then, Your Majesty. Would you please turn Degare into a vampire?" Steph asked.

I cross my arms and nod. "I would, but I want to try something first. Please come here and sit down, Sara."

Sara confusedly does as I asked. I had been thinking about if this was possible, and thought it worth trying. I know I can tell the [system] or whatever it is to turn someone into a progenitor or not when turning them. However, I've never tested if I could add it later on. 

On the status page, it looks like just an addition tacked onto the vampire race. Might as well try since I have the chance. Plus, Sara is loyal and has proven herself to me inside of the dungeon and outside. Her work gathering women could also be helped if she ran into an Ailine situation where time is of the essence. I'll talk to her later and trust her judgement like I do Ailine. People deserve to have a choice, but should know the consequences if at all possible.

Leaning down, I prick my fangs into her neck and focus on the want to send the progenitor addition. After trying, I had the same feeling of just knowing it was sent. Then I heard her gasp slightly, and knew she accepted. The [system] is so fucking weird.

Thankfully, it didn't knock her out like turning someone does. I suspected that might be the case since it isn't remaking their body or anything, but this was all a test anyway.

"Your Majesty?!" Sara says both excited and a little confused.

I grab her arm and pull her back to her feet. "Your race should have the 'Progenitor' addition next to the race on your stats. I'll talk to you about it more at a later time. Degare is your kid, now. I'm not his parent and refuse to help him make a lifelong decision like this. You're his mom, you turn him if you want to."

"Thank you, Your Majesty! Degare, come sit."

Degare nervously sits where she was. Looking around, he's getting jittery with eyes darting, but then sees Anastasia smiling brightly at him and calms down.

"I'm ready," he said with determination.

Sara squeezes his shoulder. "Just hit 'yes' when you see the prompt, Degare. When you wake up after, you'll be in your bed with us waiting for you."

With a final nod to prepare himself, it reminds me of a kid getting a shot or having blood drawn… I guess that isn't really that far off.

With a warm smile, Sara bends down and bites into him as gently as she can. A few seconds later, he passes out and the usual changes begin to occur.

Saying their goodbyes, Sara princess carries the limp Degare with a smiling Steph as the newlywed vampire family goes off to their rooms.