The price I had to pay for victory was steep but, only thanks to the fact that we managed to secure the Dungeon, was it a victory at all. The First Fleet was strained and only the presence of the Third Fleet saved the day. Vestargo's bugs used a new weapon that was terrifyingly effective: a corrosive substance that ate stone and the bones of my skeletons but wasn't as effective against metal. Thanks to it, they managed to breach the wall and, if not for the HMS Valiant, we could have been defeated. Rear Admiral Raviil Gvirael, recognizing what was going on, after blanketing the area in incendiary spells and artillery fire, landed in the breach. With Valiant acting as a cork, the bugs had to retreat or face total annihilation. The point defence systems of the dreadnought mercilessly cut down bugs by the score from point-blank range, barring their entrance to the fortress. The battle was won but I lost seventy percent of all ground troops involved in the attack. The Second Legion was gone; they protected the assault to the end but, even when the Dungeon's walls grew behind them, they couldn't retreat. Without their sacrifice, we would have lost miserably.

But Vestargo's loss was even more severe. He used hundreds of thousands of his soldiers and lost them during that battle. Because of that, he couldn't execute a counterattack and regain huge swathes of land that were essentially unguarded. For the time being, neither of us will be able to resume fighting. However, I wasn't going to let this war be about who could recover faster. I was still punching no matter how severe our wounds were and, so far, it was working. Only thanks to the Royal Navy did I still have any meaningful operational capabilities. I used it to further attack Vestargo and to appear to have more combat capability than in reality. The Fifth Legion replenished with the remains of First, marched forward, and secured the area, giving us time to fortify O'llina's Dungeon. I wasn't ready for a war of such scale and even throwing everything I could at the enemy wasn't enough. The Ancient Forest was vast. No amount of technology could help me defeat math and physics. Even magic was powerless to compensate for a simple lack of bodies I could throw into the cauldron of endless battles.

The intensity of fighting and rotation of the Legionnaires created a fairly unique situation where the newly formed Legion was battle-hardened as replacement forces of the Fifth Legion. Legio V Mors Praecones, the Death Heralds Legion, was in the thickest of battles against Vestargo and suffered even greater losses than the First and Second Legions. But, thanks to that, they became the first Legion to help create its successor Legion. Legio X Tacet Bellatores, the Silent Warriors, took experience and attitude from the Death Heralds in their ruthless and efficient way of waging war. And yet... They were just a meaningless drop...

"Even with ten Legions, it's not enough." I sighed as I looked through the glass as the rain splashed on the window. It looked like it could stop anytime now and the sun should come out.

"I suggest you form a new Legion in every Dungeon under your... our control," Freya said and corrected herself with a soft smile. She was sitting on her large, plush pillow.

It was more akin to one of my study rooms than the offices but it was in Triskelion, and I rarely had visitors here. Because of that, it was full of very peculiar workspaces my wives preferred. Like a cushion corner made by Irene, Cahrona, and Freya or a small garden-like space with a few trees preferred by Amber, Lavender, and Tia. Of course, it had a few proper desks, including mine, but they were barely visible. Along the walls were bookcases full of various books or blanks I could use if needed.

"Hmmm..." I rubbed my chin and nodded shortly. "It's a good idea. But I'm not sure if the upkeep won't kill us all. Remember that most of you struggle with keeping just a few thousand denizens at a time. It would be great if I could somehow teach everyone my passive skills. But I should spare some time and try to make some calculations instead of just taking a guess."

"I'll help you look at it when I return if you want my help. In the next few days, I will be ready to subjugate another Dungeon. The Serene Plains Dungeon in the southeast Everlight, to be precise." Freya said thoughtfully and wrote something on her tactical map. She had learned a lot from me and now she was executing the subjugation expeditions without bigger issues.

"Oh?" I smiled with a slight surprise. "You managed to subjugate the Glittering Caverns Dungeon last week. His core, Filo, if I'm not wrong, put up a fierce fight. Are you sure that you want to move already?"

"He fought only initially." She shrugged. "But he quickly surrendered when I destroyed one of his spawners. It's a surprisingly effective tactic."

"You know... That's the greatest weakness of any Dungeon. Even mine, that's why I hid the spawners and they are guarded constantly." I sighed.

"I learnt it the hard way as well..." She nodded but shook her head and smiled. "How are the negotiations with the Ebrusians?"

"We gave them the entire document packet to review before any negotiations can begin. The list of things they wanted to discuss is staggering..." Cahrona groaned in a complaint from over her desk. "I'm still working on some legal aspects and I will have to build a dedicated office from scratch. Amber and Mia just told me this was going to be a good diplomatic exercise! It is not!"

She pouted as she looked at me with a begging gaze.

"But it is a good exercise, Sister." Freya slowly shook her head. "I would have agreed with you before but, honestly, only now do I see my own shortcomings so-"

"Traitor!" Cahrona pointed at Freya with one hand and threw a pillow at her.

A small civil war erupted before my eyes that mostly involved throwing pillows at each other, I smiled softly. My wives needed a break and, while I was accustomed to the pressure of constant war, even I was tired. They started laughing together when one of the pillows exploded, sending its feathers around the room, exactly at the same moment Luna appeared in the room.

"What happened here?" She asked, looking in surprise at the feathers flying everywhere and a giggling Cahrona and Freya. "You know what? I don't want to know." She shook her head and looked at me. "I was talking with O'llina, Theon."

"I was too occupied with the rotation of our troops..." I sighed with a slight guilt in my voice. "Did you learn anything useful?"

"Yes and no... We still don't know exactly where Vestargo is." The Kitsune sighed and then smiled. "She was surprised that you are really the Emperor of an Empire consisting mainly of Mortals. She was delighted to learn that all Dungeons under your rules are far more welcoming than she could dream of. She was also surprised that most of your wives are Mortals. So, accidentally, the fact I spoke with her first worked better. But... The problem is that while we learned a lot of new things, they have minimal strategic or tactical value."

"Well... It was something I expected when she told me Vestargo keeps them as slaves." I admitted.

"There is some interesting news, however." Luna smiled as she plucked a feather from Cahrona's head. "The monsters we are killing are not exclusively monsters. They are people, Theon."

She looked at me knowingly as my face brightened. "That's fantastic news!"

"Excuse me? How is that fantastic?!" Cahrona was shocked. Despite most of her life being indoctrinated about the necessity of killing surface dwellers, she never liked it. "If they are people, we should be able to talk with them and convince them to stop this madness!"

"It's fantastic news because it means that Vestargo won't be able to keep the scale of his attacks once his Mortals suffer sufficient casualties. Also, don't be ridiculous, my Angel. They are worse than feral goblins! Do you really want to negotiate with such disgusting creatures?"

The conflicting expressions twisted her face but, finally, she lowered her gaze with a sigh. "You are right. Their reproduction cycle is as repulsive as goblins."

"You could probably find one or two decent Vespids; yes, that's what they are called..." Luna shrugged under our gaze. "But, first and foremost, they are primitive brutes without so much as a concept of diplomacy. So, even if you wanted to be stubborn and talk with them, chances are they don't have a leader to talk with."

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

"Does O'llina know where their main cities are located? If they have them..."

"I haven't asked. Why?" Luna went from surprise to the grim realisation. "Ohhh..."

"Well... Since Vestargo refuses to provide us with the locations of his civilian infrastructure it means everything is a military installation." I shrugged as I clenched my fist.

"This is just a technicality-" Luna gasped in pretended shock and a wide grin. "But I'll ask."

"Luna..." I looked at her with concern. "Tell me you didn't think that I would simply order the destruction of their cities?"

"No!" She replied in a manner that wasn't helping her case. "But we could, for example, send raid teams and gather more useful intel from the prisoners."

"I thought about raiding their city and liberating all the slaves held in there," I replied with all seriousness. "But in the end, I can't blame you for thinking that I would simply burn their cities. They are just flying goblins. Hell... They are far worse than goblins!"

The three of them looked at me uncomfortably but, finally, it was Freya who asked. "You said that twice already... Why do you think so?"

"According to the World's System, the goblin race was created as a bioweapon a millennia ago. They simply have no other choice in the way they breed. Vespids, on the other hand, are just hornet-like people. They should reproduce like their smaller counterparts. All the research we conducted on the captured specimens proved it without a doubt. They are just cruel for the sake of shortening their maturation cycle by two weeks and gaining a few more levels..."

"How can they do that?" Cahrona covered her mouth and tears welled in her eyes.

"They don't care about other races. For them, they are just slaves bred to cater to their desires and, once they can't do that anymore, they are killed in hornets' hives." I sighed. "It's cruelty for the sake of cruelty. They believe in their superiority and won't accept reason even if threatened with total annihilation. I will uphold my agreement with Vestargo about not attacking the civilian targets but Vespids will be culled when the time comes. They hold grudges and resentment like their greatest treasures and, if I show them any mercy, they will ally themselves with the next enemy that inevitably pops up. It's an open question if they will survive at all."

They looked at me in horror with a plea to stop it; I could clearly see it in their gaze. But I was powerless to stop his madness. The warm sun outside came as expected and the cheerful chirping of birds sitting on nearby trees seemed so detached from how dark the world was beyond the borders of Arcadia. The three of them were depressed but, with powerless exhales, Freya and Cahrona returned to work. Only Luna stayed, still observing me carefully.

"What are you thinking about?" My Kitsune asked softly as she gently fixed a strand of my hair.

"I can't fix everything, Luna," I admitted calmly. "No matter what I do, I'm afraid there will always be injustice and suffering in the world. Even if I, somehow, conquer Nilmerthis, there will always be people and places out of my reach where people will suffer. If not here, then somewhere else, between the stars or just beyond our reality in one of the hellish realms conquered by Void or Chaos."

"You weren't sent to heal the world, Theon." She put her soft hand on my cheek and softly smiled. "I admire you for your resolve to help people but don't blame yourself for what you can't change."

"Thank you, my Darling." I smiled and, after taking a deep breath, I crossed my arms. "I promised O'llina to answer her questions."

"I think she will need more time." Luna shrugged. "She was overwhelmed by the sudden change in her life and the amount of autonomy she unconditionally received."

"All right..." I said but a nervous and shy knocking on the door of my office surprised us. "Come in."

"Excuse me, my Lord..." A tall and young man entered my office.

The colour of his hair was the first thing that captured my attention. It was the green-blue hue of the ocean; moderately short and not in any particular order except for an occasional combing. His eyes were also the same colour and glowed slightly. His clothes or, more precisely, half of his clothing was also peculiar. His fairly muscular chest was bare with a loose, green open robe while, from his waist, he had wide, silky-like yellow-blue pants. He also had a golden chain wrapped around his left arm and a naval cutlass in a richly decorated scabbard on his hip. I furrowed my brow, trying to fit a name to such a peculiar person, and I failed.

"And who you might be?" I asked with a friendly smile, making him blush in embarrassment.

"I'm so sorry, my Lord!" He bowed in panic and I noticed how uneasy he was. "We haven't been officially introduced... My name is Tuul'kara. I'm a Deity of a... Ummm... Former Tulva?"

"Oh! Right!" I smiled and pointed at the chair. "Please, sit down. I wasn't expecting you in Avalon, but I'm glad we're finally meeting. What brings you to the capital?"

There was a moment during which Tuul'kara looked like he genuinely had no idea what to say. He was overwhelmed, surprised, and without words. However, I needed just a split second to realise that he wasn't exactly scared. He was shy and, maybe, uncomfortable, like a person with acrophobia standing on a high balcony. He submissively lowered his head.

"I... I wondered if I could stay somewhere in Avalon because my sister kicked me out of our home and God Ertu told me to come here..." Tuul'kara mumbled with his gaze fixed on my desk.

"Your sister kicked you out?" Freya asked as I tried to process his request without breaking into laughter.

"I'm sure she will calm down eventually..." He smiled awkwardly. "We argued about the course of tides and one thing came to another... She shouldn't have redecorated our temple..."

"Okay..." I replied as I decided that the reason for their argument wasn't my problem. However, the fact that he was so anxious while speaking with us wasn't good. "Tuul'kara, you don't have to be so nervous when you speak with us, or me. I know that the circumstances of our first meeting weren't very... friendly. But, back then, I didn't want to fight against any more Eternals so I left dealing with you and your sister to Ertu and Akh'ila. However, right now, I think of you both as my allies so you don't have to be so tense."

"I... I'm sorry, Sir." He tried to smile. "It's not exactly a fear of you because you have proved to be an honest ally and, under your rules, our people thrive. It's a..." He smiled miserably and looked around with a sigh. "I always took offence when some people were afraid of the ocean. They feared the vast expanse of my beloved glittering waters and they paled seeing the majestic waves. But it seems that I'm not so different... I... I might be afraid of land, my Lord."

I mulled over that statement and briefly nodded. A god of water afraid of dry land was something so absurd that it must have been a truth.

"If you don't mind, you can stay in Avalon..." I proposed and smiled. "I could make a marine biome in one of my combat zones for you..."

"Oh, that wouldn't be necessary..." He smiled with slightly raised hands. "I must face this irrational fear so I would be glad if I could just... rent? I think that was the word. Could I rent a lodging? Of course, I would pay for it!"

He took out a large pouch and quickly opened it. It was full of beautiful pearls in many stunning colours which instantly caught the attention of my wives. I would lie if I said that I wasn't shocked by their magical properties along with the mesmerising colours.

"Oh... I can't accept them. You are our guest and friend, Tuul'kara." I said despite the fact I would like to give them to my wives.

However, Tuul'kara grimaced and looked uncomfortable at me but seeing the disappointment on the faces of my wives, he smiled.

"In that case, please accept them as a gift from a friend." He proposed.

"If you allow it, then, I would turn them into jewellery for my wives." I smiled at him and accepted the pouch. It was much heavier than it should be.

"It would be an honour." Tuul'kara warmly smiled more comfortably and nodded. "I was also informed by God Ertu that I should seek a person named Ian Southcross when I'm in Avalon. I know that name as he is almost revered as a saint amongst the Master Shipwrights of Tuvarin but I don't know who he is..."

"Ian? Why am I not surprised... He is currently working on refitting HMS Victory so you can find him somewhere near the ship."

"Oh! Victory is in Avalon?!" That was met with almost child-like enthusiasm. "It's the most beautiful ship I have ever seen! Would it be a problem for me to take a tour inside?"

"I'm sure that Ian will be more than happy to give you a tour." I smiled and saw the amused stares my wives exchanged. "Victory is in the dry dock so my secretary, Eva, will show you the mansion and then take you to Ian."

She entered the office and slightly bowed to me.

"Thank you, Sir! Tuul'kara beamed a wide and happy smile as he quickly bowed to me and left the office with Eva.

"A nice guy." Freya grinned.

"Indeed." I agreed with a smile. "However, I was surprised to hear that his sister kicked him out of their home. In a way, that's funny."

"True." Freya chuckled and took the pouch with pearls. "Now, if you will excuse us, we have urgent business with Rubby..."

"Oh, I think that this time I will go with you." I chuckled.

I could probably spend one evening on this...

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