Don had just given me a wonderful way to read more often. When I thought about it I realized I could even flip multiple books in front of me with telekinesis and add them to my reading stack all at once!

“Thank you! I will try that out later. I consider this repayment for thrusting all of this on me.”

He nodded and stepped away. I was still so surprised I had never thought of it. I need to protect him with an amulet in case he comes up with some other good stuff. Well, that and I need him to keep watch over Bookdom and push through more book-making policies, as well as policies to help the people.

I was about to go talk to Bearista when I noticed that Kobrick was stacking some sheets of paper together and getting up. Since I didn’t want to wait too long, I made my way over to him. “Is it ready?”

“I believe so, goddess. It would be preferable if you look through it, though. I am a little confused as to how I was able to write in here. Will it be there when we leave here?” he asked a very reasonable question.

“You are able to write here because it is a part of how the spell works. It won’t be there when we leave unless I cast another spell. I will look through these and modify them as needed.”

“Interesting. Ask me if you have any questions about the speech. Really, any at all. This is very important, and I don’t want it to be wrong. “

“How do you feel about Lian taking Firth’s spot as the leader of Astraville and him becoming the hand of the king?”

“I am fine with it if you are. Before Firth came, we had planned on her getting the spot, which is likely why she was so jealous. None of that is okay due to how she treated you. Since you were the focus of that, though, and have forgiven her, I will not hold it against her. You see more and know more than I ever will.”

It seemed he was just as anxious as I was since it was his speech ideas. If he missed anything or if it went wrong, he would feel extreme guilt. His position regarding Lian seemed neutral at best. She had an uphill battle to gain their approval, but it was her responsibility to prove herself. If she could take some of the responsibilities off my shoulders, then she would be good to me. Giving me more time to read was the best thing she could do for me.

“Thank you for the praise. I need time to look through this.”

He took the hint and headed over to the others.

While going reading through it, I noticed he had covered all the key points that I wanted on unity, who I am, what some of my plans are, and how worshiping me will bring about a better future. The speech even had notes on which healing spell to use and ideas on lighting. It felt strange to manipulate people in this way, but it would open up many more possibilities. Eliminating any doubts from my people that I am just a mere impostor would make it much easier to implement new policies for the betterment of everyone.

I made some changes to better suit my needs and then called everyone, “I am ready. Does anyone else have anything to say before we leave?” No one said anything or made any particular gestures, so after a moment, I ended the spells one by one.

We were back with the king holding the crown before me. I took the crown from his hands, and he looked up at me. “King Al’Don, you have shown that you acknowledge your mistakes. You have tried to do right in your position, even when those in the shadows tried to stop you. I cannot say the same for your daughter, though. Donna is no longer a citizen of this country and will be under house arrest until she proves she has changed. She is removed from the line of succession.” I announced to the entire room.

Gasps could be heard throughout the room due to my proclamation. I placed the crown back on his head and handed him an amulet of protection, like the others were wearing. “Moving forward, I declare you as the King of the new nation of Bookdom, my divine land. Your Hand of the King shall be Firth, the leader of Astraville. From today onwards, we shall transform my birthplace into a land that aligns with my vision.”

I cast a flight spell and headed out of the room, ignoring the looks of shock and reverence. There was a scramble for others to follow, so I slowed my pace. They needed to witness this. The bears also trailed behind me. We flew up into the sky and reopened a massive entrance to the library for a show.

I cast a voice projection spell so that my voice would be heard in both domes. Then I cast an illusion spell that made a copy of me ten times my size right next to me. “All those who wish to be healed by your Goddess Astrid, open up your hearts and pray to me so that I may channel my divine healing to you.”

Immediately, there was a wave of people streaming out of their houses to come and look at me. All of them stared up at me. It was honestly so scary. I gave everyone time to get into whatever position they liked, wherever they liked.

“This land is now Bookdom by divine decree. King Al’Don shall remain its ruler, with Firth of Astraville as his Hand of the King. Former princess Donna shall remain under house arrest until she proves herself not to be a heretic. This land is my birthplace, and I care for it deeply, so seeing what a state it has become hurts me. From now on, we shall move forward together in unity to bring about a better future. A future without calamity beasts nor the magical curse. A future where we all have more time to read. Believe in me, as I still believe in that change that is possible in you.”

With that out of the way, I cast a series of greater enlarged spells at an archmage level so that both domes would be affected. Firstly, there was healing for any physical wounds. Then I sent out a wave of mental resolution, which caused everyone to resolve any issues they were having mentally at the time. That would fix my fear spell. Then I cast mending to repair everyone’s clothes and clean them. Lastly, I sent a feeding spell that filled everyone’s stomachs, leaving them feeling satisfied.

“I must leave you now and return to the library. I will be watching and taking a more active role from now on. So do well, my people.”

I went back into the library with the bears. I heaved a large sigh of relief, having gotten that over with.

“What about the others?” Bearista asked.

My hand hit my forehead. That wasn’t in the script.  I quickly cast invisibility and snuck back into Bookdom. {Everyone meet me by the minecart exit, I will be there shortly.} I sent to the others. In the meantime, I would see how things were going till they got there.

It was really just a large range of reactions. From joy to repentance, everyone had their own way of handling what had just happened. If I were more nosy, I would look for anyone scared and mark them for further investigation, but I didn’t have time for that at the moment. My books were calling.

There were no riots in the streets or anything going on that was violent, so I was relieved. I was going to come back and check on things after a few hours, but this way was best. You never knew when something would go wrong.

When I got to the covered entrance of the minecart railway, I was surprised to see Don was there with the others. That was likely because he had made it into the inner circle when I teleported him into my mental space. It was good for me to talk to him here anyway.

I opened up the entrance to the minecart railway.

“Don, please build something nice for the entrance to Astraville. Firth will work with you on bringing citizens who need homes to Astraville.”

“Yes, of course. May I go as well?” he asked, looking hopeful.

It may not be comfortable for some of the people in Astraville, but it would do well for our image. That gave me the idea of who could handle it. “Lian, Kobrick. Please set up a tour for Al’Don.”

Lian and Kobrick nodded in understanding. That seemed to cover most things that needed to be addressed at the moment. Now it was time for some “me” time, and by that, I meant reading time!

“Everyone, thank you for your assistance. This has taken a lot of getting used to, and I have expended a decent amount of energy as of late. I need some rest and time to process it all so that we can continue to move forward. If an emergency pops up, just tap your amulets. Does anybody have anything else for me?”

Firth stepped forward, “You have done so much for us. Please rest, and when you return, the Bookdom shall have changed.”

He thought I needed a long rest, which is what I should have done, but there was too much to do. I really didn’t need to worry about my mana levels, especially with the work I have been doing on my divine source. My social levels just needed time to recuperate.

“Oh, ah, it will only be about a week or two. I want to go explore for more books, plus have a readathon with Fienna. Then I will likely come out to see what new food creations are going on.”

“Okay, then we will manage while you are gone.”

“Well, about that, I meant what I said. Do what you think is best, and I will only interject as needed. Lizlin is available as my secretary to get anything you want my advice on or anything else you need from me. There is too much going on in the world for me to be focused only here. It is all of your turn to manage a better future while I work on the bigger issues.”

Firth seemed unsure of what to say. Luckily, it seemed Don had his back. “We have this. With your authority, I can make the changes I have been wanting to make.”

“Thank you. I will take my leave now.”

With a flick of my hands, I teleported to my room in Astraville. There were stacks and stacks of books that I had recently acquired, with more on the way. I summoned a glass of my favorite blue fizzy drink and grabbed my latest book to read. With a sigh of relief from a job well done, I curled up in bed with my book and began to read away the stress of life as a goddess.