The builder ants worked hard to bring furniture into the guest cottages. Fifty in total they were practically a small village. Darion oversaw their work and helped them lift things and carry them. Small ones, as gremlins were not particularly strong, but he still helped.
Now that he wasn’t a fugitive, he could breathe easier. Truly, he couldn’t have done this without the supreme overlord and her fiancé. Or was she the supreme overlady? No, there was no such word.
As Darion was lost in thought, he didn’t notice two humans coming into the forest. It was Danika and Nathan, here to offer help for the Yule celebration. They stared at the guest area in wonder. There were treehouses in the trees for birds and children alike. Bird baths and fountains with bubbling water next to each house. The houses were even painted a nice soft yellow color.
“This is much better than the orphanage. I wonder if Theanore would agree to house the orphans here from now on.” Said Danika as she ran a hand over a wall. It had no imperfections in it. As if someone had molded it from one giant slab of stone.
“Our little nymph letting the opportunity for around 300 children to come here go? She will be ecstatic. But how will she feed this many every day? She has funds, true, but not enough space for crops or animals,” said Nathan.
“And she would be squeamish to butcher the animals needed to feed the children,” agreed Danika. Still, they had to make their case. The forest of fireflies was three villages away from Mirstone. Surely if the orphanage was supplied regularly then so could the forest?
The publishing house gave 10% of its profit to charity. Among the many projects it funded, the orphanage was the most important one. Callan Perry even had a foundation that sent orphans to colleges and universities, and the entire town pitched in to fund it.
If Theanore agreed to house the orphans in this clean and well-kept forest, then not only will they get better accommodations, they would be able to start a village here. And if word spread out that a registered dungeon core in the peaceful list ran an orphanage, then even the greediest of adventurers wouldn’t want to raid Theanore’s dungeon.
As they passed the petting zoo, Danika did a double take. There, in one of the pens, a murder muffin was playing tug the rope with a dog. In another pen, another murder muffin was using a hamster as a pillow.
“Am I seeing this correctly?” Asked Danika Nathan and he chuckled.
“If you are hallucinating, then so am I. It is only logical that Theanore managed to tame the terrors to the point they fit in a petting zoo. Do you want me to snatch you one to pet?” Asked Nathan, but Danika showed him the sign that Darion has placed, forbidding jumping over the fence and taking the animals.
“Then how are we supposed to pet them?” Asked Nathan, brows furrowed.
“They have to come to you. Who are you two?” Asked Darion, and the two editors turned to look at the gremlin. Gone were his Yule clothes. Now he wore a green tunic with leaves on it and pants with Ogre demise stitched at the kneecaps. His shoes were also green, and they had raspberries painted on the leather.
“My name is Danika Summers and this is Nathan Reed. We are editors from the Mirstone publishing house, and we are here to speak with Theanore about a possible charity project we can do together,” said Danika, and both Nathan, and she extended their hands towards Darion for a handshake.
“I am Darion the gremlin. You must have been the ones to help the supreme overlord with her book. It is a pleasure to meet you,” said Darion, shaking the hands at the same time with both of his.
“Darion, where is Theanore? Or maybe you can point us at Marinus or Crassus?” Asked Nathan. He was eagerly awaiting to meet the family again. The last he heard from them, Marinus had gone by himself on a dangerous quest. Surely, he was back.
“Theanore is with her mother practicing rope jumping to build up leg muscle and dexterity. But Marinus is with Luca, tinkering with the life-extending ring. I am sure he could welcome you. Follow me,” said Darion, and he led them to Marinus and Luca.
The two-year-old in looks former dungeon core regarded Danika and Nathan with suspicion. As soon as Marinus saw them, however, he rushed to hug Nathan. He received a pat on the bag and a piece of candy. It was a small ritual of theirs.
“You two haven’t come to visit ever since the book signing finished,” said Marinus, the accusation clear in his voice. “Does Mister Perry want another book? We have no material, sorry.”
Nathan chuckled at that. While Theanore wanted to share all her knowledge, Marinus hoarded it like a dragon. He had expected this answer from him.
“Your gremlin friend here said something about a life-extending ring? Is this your new project?” Asked Nathan and Marinus shifted his eyes to look at Luca who, after a minute of thinking, nodded.
“The ring is Luca’s. He lets me tinker with it to see if we can’t mass produce it. But so far, I couldn’t disenchant it in the mana fountain. And I dare not melt it.”
“If you manage to mass produce such a ring, many people would flock to you, Marinus. You will create a world where terminally ill people will still be able to enjoy a normal lifespan. But this is not what we came here for. Danika, if you would be so kind.”
“Mari, you have fifty empty houses. How would you like to fill them with orphans?” Asked Danika, hopefully. Marinus was a good kid, but he was pragmatic. He could still say no. But her fears were unfounded as the boy gave her a bright smile.
“Thea would love more playmates. When can they move in?” Asked Marinus, already imagining the smile Theanore was going to give him when he told her the news.
