I used my magnified vision to spot Lydia and General Belmond discussing something while on horseback at the very front of the Renalian army. If I had to guess, the topic was: why the hell are the city gates destroyed and half the city razed? The unexpected level of destruction would give any leader pause before advancing.

At a glance, they brought almost five battalions worth of soldiers and siege equipment, which roughly equated to 5,000 men. From what I recalled about medieval military documentaries, even the most powerful countries couldn’t bear to send more than a few thousand into hostile territory due to severe strains on the supply chain. So deploying this many soldiers was a massive logistical nightmare for a middling kingdom like Renalis. It demonstrated how serious Lydia was when she said she wanted to expand Renalis from land to sea. Taking Calais meant she would have an easier time conquering the port cities along the Altanovan coastline.

I’m American, so who am I to deny Manifest Destiny? All hail imperialism!

I told Idyia to dress into her maid uniform then we left the castle and mounted Renala. I already had an idea for how to approach Lydia. I wanted to showcase how much I’d grown since meeting her. Though I still didn’t really enjoy the idea of becoming king, I knew maturing into the role meant the world to my fiance.

Renala roared and unleashed a pillar of golden flames high into the sky. The army's cries of alarm and preparation echoed even this far into the city. Renala circled dangerously low, right on top of the Renalian army. There were gasps of shock and awe. Many soldiers saluted the golden dragon or simply dropped to their hands and knees and prostrated themselves. Renala released another wave of flames into the air then flapped her wings to suddenly arrest her flight at the head of the army’s formation, where Lydia, Belmond, and their personal guards were gathered. Just beating her wings once was enough to kick up a harsh gale of wind and dust that was strong enough to send an armored man stumbling backward a few steps.

Renala craned her neck so all could see I was mounted atop her.

“Stand at ease, Soldiers of Renalis,” I shouted, pouring every bit of my Strength and Constitution into amplifying and projecting my voice across the many ranks. “By order of the Queen, I have personally conquered the capital of Altanova.” I paused for dramatic effect and raised Laevatein. “Calais is ours! Long live the Queen!”

“Long live the Queen!” Echoed a platoon standing near the very front of the army: the champions I dubbed from Dolor Keep, I noticed with a grin. The chant soon reverberated throughout the entire army, electrifying the air. Renala roared and took to the air just as Idyia and I dismounted to face Lydia and General Belmond. The guards, familiar with my unique position as their next king, quickly made a path for me to pass and dropped to one knee.

"As you were," I stepped through them when they started to form up off to the side to give the four of us some room.

I looked up at Lydia as she remained mounted upon a white horse. She cut a magnificent and feminine figure in her mother’s armor, a battle dress crafted for mages who fought on the front line. I now knew why she wanted me to be a Spellblade: it was her mother's Class.

“L-Levin, you took the city?” She sounded like she didn’t believe her own words. Her expression was a mix of adoration and confusion. Even General Belmond stared at Idyia and I, completely dumbfounded by my declaration. Single-handedly taking an entire city was something straight out of a mythological legend. Although they both knew I was a Hero, to confirm it with their own two eyes was still mind blowing.

“Not bad for my first campaign, right?” I set my hands on my hips and grinned. I was trying to calm them down with a bit of casual candor; the way they were looking at me like I was some kind of god was flattering but also extremely disturbing. “This was for you, Lydia, thanks for everything.”

I saw tears rim the edges of Lydia’s eyes. She dismounted and almost lunged forward to embrace me, but I reached out and stopped her. “Not yet," my tone turned solemn. "Your Majesty, you still have one more job to do. The most important of all.”

I walked over to the bannerman within Lydia’s personal guard, took the flag of Renalis from him, and presented it to Lydia as Renala swooped back down near us. Following my telepathic direction, Lydia took the flag and Renala gently picked up Lydia in both her claws then flew up to the castle wall. She deposited my fiance atop the wall. She planted the flag of her kingdom upon the wall’s highest point. Dragon wings of golden flames erupted from her back as she raised her jeweled scepter.

“Long live the Queen!” I shouted and all 5,000 soldiers repeated the chant. I looked up at Lydia's regal figure standing over all of us and smiled. Maybe my glasses were rosy, but I knew she was going to be a great Queen.

The next few days were mainly logistical in nature. There were still pockets of demonic resistance throughout the city and it would normally take months before they were all fully eliminated, but the soldiers took to their work with gusto, having been spared from enduring a lengthy siege. Idyia was no longer at my side on a constant basis. I assigned her to help the counter-insurgency efforts. I made her fight in the open, something she despised, but her reputation as a beautiful, silver haired swordswoman grew on a daily basis.

One of the first orders of business was ensuring Lydia truly presented the Dark Elves with the citizenship I promised. Unfortunately, it came with caveats. Every single Dark Elf would have to swear upon a geass of absolute and eternal loyalty toward the royal family of Renalis or be burned by Bahamut’s dragonfire, much like how Idyia first did. It was the only way to appease the clergymen serving the Primaries lest they declare a holy war against Renalis for housing heretics and demonkin. Even then, Lydia was forced to pay four times the annual tribute to the various Churches, which would bankrupt the kingdom within a decade or less. Access to the sea and a plethora of new resources would alleviate this problem, but it would forever stunt the kingdom’s economic growth.

That was the price Renalis had to pay and I was livid. It was like taking two steps forward and twelve steps back. Now that I fully accepted my role as king and husband to Lydia, the very notion of my land and my wife being extorted by religious powers pissed me off.

“This is why a separation of church and state is necessary!” I complained while doing single-finger push-ups.

“Levin, please keep your blasphemy to your telepathy,” Lydia complained from the bed and threw a pillow at me. I fell onto my face with a pitiful squawk. “That’s not how society is built in Valeria. I am the descendant of Bahamut’s sister! The Gods are very real. You cannot dismiss them or their desires like you do on Earth.”

“Ah, god damnit. Literally, I guess." I rolled onto my back and irately scratched my head. "All right, enough venting. We need to figure out how to economically compensate, right?” I rejoined her in bed and laid sideways so I could face her. After voicing my frustration, I was ready to come up with solutions.

Lydia sat up and I watched the sheets slide off her curves and gather around her waist. We moved long past any nudity taboos, but I was always enamored by Lydia’s beauty every single time I beheld her. I wrapped one arm possessively around her waist and buried my head into her thighs.

Charisma is fucking great.

“It will take decades before I can completely integrate Altanova into Renalis. I’ve already begun to distribute Altanova’s land across my vassals, but mass migrations will take months if not years." She informed me while stroking my head like a pet.

“The biggest issue is the movement of men and material, right? Then we can start profiting.”

“We?" She leaned down and kissed my forehead. I pulled away and shrugged. "If the crown fits," I teased.

"Oh, it will look divine on you."

I rolled my eyes then returned to the main topic. “We’re going to build a train from the coast to the capital.” I sent Lydia telepathic images and videos of trains in action and how they could impact the socioeconomic state of an entire country in less than a year. Her eyes went wide at the implications and she covered her mouth while calculating the costs and benefits.

“Is this related to that steam engine you mentioned before?” She eventually recalled.

“Yeah. I’ve watched too many internet videos on random shit,” I muttered. Any normal human would have brain-dumped all that information, and I did at some point. But my high Intelligence allowed me to remember those videos when I focused on them. At first it started out as me remembering arbitrary bits and pieces of things I long forgot, but now I could even recall pages in a textbook or technical manual if I tried hard enough. That was probably why mages valued high Intelligence; it helped them remember Spells or whatever complex rituals they needed to perform.

“Then you must go to Akeroyd Peak and speak with the dwarves immediately. They are the finest craftsmen in Renalis. We will need their expertise.” Lydia stated with a judge’s finality.

“Already sending me off? You’re just like my ex.” I laughed then choked on air at Lydia’s scowl.

Foot in mouth, dumbass. Who likes being compared to someone’s ex-wife?!

“Oh no,” the smile she wore didn’t quite reach her eyes. “We have two whole months to make up for, Levin. You will satisfy me even if it kills you.”

I awoke late the next morning and met up with Anna. We had a private breakfast and I relished the first taste of a home-cooked meal. Both Idyia and Lydia were extremely engaging, exotic, and erotic, but Anna was my anchor. She was the balance between us all and I cherished her for it. I'm fairly certain if she didn't exist, Lydia and I would’ve already spun ourselves into a wall with our differing opinions. Hell, Anna was the whole reason I helped Lydia after I saved them from Hasting's men. She was why Lydia was so open minded about my viewpoints. She was the one who initially convinced Lydia to give the Dark Elves a chance at servitude. Without her, Idyia would likely be dead.

We all owed so much to Anna, so I fully committed myself to make her dreams come true.

"So, how many kids do you want?" I finally asked after indulging in a bit of gluttony. This was a topic I didn’t dare broach with telepathy. This conversation demanded my full and undivided attention. Anna deserved that and more.

She smiled warmly and sat next to me after carefully folding her uniform beneath her. "At least two. Maybe four. I’d take good care of Rebecca, too. I’ll treat her as mine, I promise." She hastily added.

Of all of my lovers, Anna was the only one who stated she would take up a motherly role with Rebecca. She was the only one who did not doubt I would see my baby girl again. She was the only one who truly believed I would kill three Demon Gods; even when I didn't.

Holy shit, I love you.

I whistled playfully to get her to relax and took her hands in mine.

"Do you have names picked out? I'm really bad at them."

Anna held the cutest blush while gently squeezing her fingers around mine.

"Juliet and Jeremiah, to start."

Well, her naming sense was better than mine. I wondered if letter themes were common in her family.

"Those are great, I love them." I said brightly and pulled Anna into a tight hug. I planned to monopolize all of her time today, so I whisked her from the castle and took her dragon riding. The look of elation on her face was priceless. We danced among the clouds for about two hours then landed on a deserted beach. Anna never saw the ocean before and I made sure to pick out the best spot I could find with my magnified vision.

I took a small bedroll enough for two and set it down for both of us. Finally, I laid out a small basket of sandwiches Anna prepared. We shared a meal, flirted a bit, made some idle small talk, and went skinny-dipping in the cool water. It was a simple enough date, but after all the extravagance I was exposed to, simple was best. I found myself smiling in a more genuine, unreserved fashion. Anna was the girl next door, the one I would awkwardly introduce to my parents and work through a mundane life filled with normal, plebeian struggles. It was so easy to imagine that’s how our relationship would pan out.

While we sunbathed on the bed, I secretly reached for a small, wooden box and turned my whole body to face Anna. She tilted her head and did likewise. Our noses touched and we both giggled, but when she noticed the box clutched tightly in my hands, her breath hitched.

I took one of her hands and gently isolated her ring finger.

“Annabell, will you marry me?”