The flight to Vandalland was surprisingly short. King Eduard the Defenestrator got me a ride on one of their fastest dragons so it would go as swiftly as possible. And I was quite very grateful for that.

I arrived at Vandalland's capital, where a group of knights were waiting for me at the dragon port. They held up a giant sign that read "Saint Sir Gustav, Lord von Blitzburg." With my retainers following me, I approached them.

"You're here for me?" I asked.

One of the knights looked at me for a moment before nodding.

"You look exactly like how Her Majesty described you," he answered. "We are here to escort you to her castle so you may start preparing for the wedding."

"Then, lead the way," I replied.

We rode horses through the streets of the city. I noted that they were different from Greenrivers'. The towns of Greenrivers were heavily organized, likely planned out ahead of time. Their roads were neatly planned, very much like modern places in my old world.

This city of Vandalland was a true Medieval location. It was filled with winding streets, narrow corridors, and was not planned out. Instead, it looked like it sprung up naturally as it grew. Some people call modern cities concrete jungles. But they're not. They're far too controlled. This was a true manmade rainforest.

The castle itself looked like something out of 15th-century Spain, the sort of thing the Spaniards would make in the latter stages of the Reconquista. I recalled that the Vandals ruled over Spain before the Islamic conquest. Maybe some god gave them these designs to reference that?

"You wouldn't know him, but yes, a god did that," Dʰéǵʰom confirmed.

I also noticed the kaiju-sized dragon pretending to hide behind the castle. This pretty much confirmed that Cinnamon was the dragon Prince Wisimir got for the wedding plans. It was pretty amazing that people could carry on their business with a dragon that big there. Cinnamon had probably been here long enough that they were used to him.

We arrived at the castle building proper, where my retainers and I waited in the grand hall. It had been fitted for a feast, likely part of the wedding preparations. We didn't have to wait long. Soon, Queen Hildoara came through a door. Several knights were with her.

My retainers and I knelt, but Hildoara grabbed my hands and pulled me up.

"We're going to be married soon. You don't need to kneel to me, Gustav, even if you aren't a king yet," Hildoara said.

I gave her a warm smile.

"It's great to see you again, Hildoara," I replied. "And under much better terms than last time."

She nodded.

"That was a bit of a mess, but it's good that you arrived when you did. There would have been a bit of trouble if you showed up any later," Hildoara stated.

Then, my fiancee looked behind me.

"These are your retainers, I presume?" she questioned.

"Most of them," I stated. "One of my retainers will come with my parents."

A soft smile crossed Hildoara's face.

"It's been years since I last saw them. I look forward to seeing them again," she replied. "Go ahead and introduce me to your retainers who are here, Gustav."

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Hildoara then gave Joanna a nod.

"Save for the retainers that I already know," she said.

My heart filled with joy. Hildoara remembered Joanna! I wouldn't have blamed her if she didn't considering how long it was since they met, and she was at least aware of her, but I was happy Hildoara remembered how my wet nurse looked.

"These are Sir Johannes and Dame Astrid," I said. "I knighted them myself, and my parents recently adopted Dame Astrid. So, she's also my sister now."

"It is an honor to meet you both," Hildoara stated.

"The honor is all ours. I was wondering what sort of woman stole my brother's heart," Astrid replied with a smile.

A chuckle escaped from the queen's mouth.

"I suppose that Wisimir is eager to meet Gustav in person. But wedding preparations have kept him busy. I am afraid that he won't be able to meet any of you until the day of the wedding," she said.

Her gaze flickered between Joanna, Johannes, and Astrid.

"Thank you both for keeping Gustav safe," Astrid gave them a slight bow. "If he died, I don't know what I'd have done."

A hint of pride entered Johannes' stance. His knowledge of monsters had helped me a lot in the past, so I'd say he deserved it.

"I was just doing my duty," he said.

"As were we all," Joanna added.

Hildoara turned to me.

"Gustav, I want to talk to you alone," she stated.

"I feel the same way," I said.

Soon after that, Hildoara and I were in her bedchamber. Brightly colored sheets filled the bed. The carpet was a brilliant hue of red. Weapons along with armor lined the walls.

"This used to be my father's room," Hildoara explained. "But as the reigning queen, it's mine now."

I nodded and let out a slight breath.

"It must have been hard," I said.

"Oh, it's a pain in the ass. But I must endure it. Gustav, I'm sorry that you'll have to go through something similar," Hildoara replied.

I shrugged.

"It's fine. I know what I'm getting into. You don't have to worry about it," I stated.

Hildoara breathed a sigh of relief. She nodded.

"Thank the gods for that," the queen said. "Now, Gustav, you said you have one more retainer who has yet to arrive. I heard rumors that one of your retainers is a minotaur. Is that..."

"Yes, the retainer who's not here is the minotaur. His name is Dr. Asterios Minos," I explained.

For a moment, Hildoara stood in stunned silence. Then, she let out a slight breath.

"I don't know why I'm surprised. You tamed a wild dragon, and minotaurs are less dangerous than they are. Some of them are known to work for excentric mages under certain circumstances. But to have one in civilization is unheard of," she stated.

"Well, I guess it's a little bit special," I replied. "But I really just gave him some land that he can graze in."

Then, a thought came to me.

"Hildoara, has Vandalland adopted debit and credit accounting yet?" I asked.

"No. I've heard of it from some merchants. It apparently comes from Greenrivers, but only a few people here use it," she answered. "Why do you ask?"

Right. Hildoara was going to be my wife. It was about time for me to tell her. Some things are too private to tell most people, and too embarrassing to tell your parents, but Hildoara needed to know.

One explanation later, a look of slight shock was on her face.

"You remember your past life?" she questioned.

"Yes, that is what I just said," I replied.

"And it was in another world?" Hildoara wondered.

I nodded.

"That is something else I just told you, yes."

"This is...a bit hard to believe," Hildoara replied.

There was a moment of silence before she spoke again.

"But it would explain some of the weird things you wrote to me in your letters. Or how a child was able to design something as intricate as a guillotine. Or some of the knowledge you possess. Were you an engineer in your past life?"

I shook my head.

"No. I was an accountant," I explained. "It's sort of like a steward. Except I worked for a merchant instead of a noble."

Explaining modern concepts to Medieval people wasn't exactly easy, but Hildoara seemed to get what I was saying.

"So, you won't be able to get some of the advanced technologies your world has over here?" she asked.

I shook my head.

"Some, maybe, but I have no idea how most of it worked. And we're able to replicate a lot of it with magic anyway and with less damage to the environment," I shrugged.

Then, I gave Hildoara a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry, though. Dʰéǵʰom's working on getting some mental health specialists over. Those are guys who keep people from going insane," I said.

"I think I've found some gods who'll let us bring some over," the deity commented inside my head. "But it'll probably be a while. Like, at least a few decades."

Not ideal, but as long as we got some here, that was probably the best I could hope for.

Hildoara nodded before taking and letting out a deep breath. She gave me a soft smile.

"Gustav, thank you for telling me this. But right now, I don't want to think of anything serious. I've been saddled with annoying work and politics ever since Wisimir made me take the throne. I'd rather just take a few moments to relax," Hildoara stated.

I gave her a thumbs up.

"No problem, Hildoara. If you want to relax, I can help you with it too," I said.

And thus, I would end up spending the rest of the day telling her various jokes.

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