Quinlan stepped back into the moonlit room, and the seam of pale light sealed shut behind him.
The mansion hadn’t changed while they were gone. Puddles of melted ice still caught the light across the stone floor. Elder Chizuru slumped against the far wall, Hozumi still struggling for his life. Kaede remained in the corner, her breathing shallow, her eyes on nothing.
"Quin!!" Jasmine bounced on her toes, far too dutiful.
Quinlan smiled at her and let [Warp Gate] hum to life in his open palm. A vertical doorway of warped air stabilized in the center of the room. "Anyone heading to Miri Town, now’s the time."
"Love you!" Jasmine tip-toed, leaving a big smooch on his cheek, and was moving before the gate finished forming.
Lucille followed close behind, catching his hand as she passed. "I’ll check on Mavena and spend some time with her. Don’t get too carried away while I’m gone..." she mused with a big grin.
"Carried away? Why would I do that?"
"Oh, I don’t know... Maybe we just learned some earth-shattering news and my primordial lover isn’t one to sit still for long? Especially now that he has a friend. You boys behave, alright?" she kissed him and left before either man could even respond to her terribly inaccurate statements.
Aurora walked in after them with no fanfare, already pulling her hair up. "Guess I’ll help you a bit, Jasmine."
The gate winked shut.
"Master, Blossom wants to see Rosie!!" Blossom’s tail was already going.
"She’s probably still terrorizing the elves and the little ladies in the garden, though I imagine you already know perfectly well where they are." He scratched behind her ear as she nodded fervently. "Have fun."
The blur of blonde hair and golden tail was out the door before the words finished leaving his mouth.
"I’m taking the biggest bath in this mansion," Kitsara announced to nobody in particular, stretching until her spine popped. Her tails swished behind her as she sauntered toward the corridor. "If anyone needs me in the meantime... Go talk to one of the more responsible girls."
On her way out, she grabbed Vex by the hand and began dragging her away. "e, Vexie. Us demon chicks need to have a strategy meeting..."
"What kind...?" Vex asked, already purring with a strong suspicion.
"With our new bodies, a lot of possibilities opened up, right~?"
A pair of red, yandere eyes lit up. "Hmm... Fine. Let’s discuss. We have to ensure everything is perfect for the first time..."
Myrasyn and Isveth were glancing at Quinlan with big, hopeful eyes.
"I’ll need some time to get things in order before we head out," Quinlan muttered. "It’d be my honor to host you for the night."
"!!" Both elves seemed exhilarated to hear that. Then, Myrasyn’s gaze drifted to the tall windows. Outside, Rosie’s tree rose massive and silver in the garden below, its branches sprawling wide enough to shade half the grounds, pale light pooling high in the canopy. Her eyes lit up.
Isveth followed her queen’s stare and clasped her hands together. "Is that where the little one plays?"
"Yep. She has five elven handmaidens, they must have a lot of stories to tell you two." Quinlan grinned. "Also, don’t let Rosie run all over you..."
Just one look at the pair of turbo excited women was enough to tell Quinlan that they’d basically do whatever Rosie wanted them to.
’She gets whatever she wants, huh...’
Myrasyn’s long ears were twitching helplessly. "e, Isveth!"
Isveth bowed to Quinlan and hurried after the queen, both elves disappearing down the hall, all thought of politics forgotten in favor of a little girl and a very large tree.
Near the doorway, Kaelira and Seraphiel had drifted into the kind of animated whisper that only two elven women planning a trip could produce.
Kaelira’s violet eyes were sparkling. "The royal dwarven smithy... Their forges... If even half of what I’ve read about them is real..."
"Mm, very practical." Seraphiel nodded along, blonde hair swaying. "I want to see the boutiques. The elven capital is famous for their sense of fashion... And now that we have enough money laying around..." The bombshell elf’s lips turned upwards. "It’s finally time for me to go on a splurging spree~"
Then she clasped her hands together with a dreamy exhale. "And the forests... they say the scenery is out of this world... Taking Quin on a walk there... And then~"
"And then?"
"Well..."
They wandered off still detailing all they wanted to do.
In the adjacent corridor, Serika’s voice carried warm and effortless as she waved the Scarlet Lilies forward. "e on, ladies. Let’s get you settled in. I’m sure you’re hungry after all that happened today."
Scar walked beside her. "They’re used to going without food after days of constant fighting."
"Oi, little one," Bronnya wasn’t of the same opinion. "Just because you don’t need to eat doesn’t mean you should punish the rest of us!"
"What she said..." Void, for once, agreed with the tanker, pouting strong. "And while you’re at it, redhead with mesmerizing green eyes and amazingly tanned skin I’m not one bit jealous of-"
"My name is Serika."
"Yes, you... While you’re feeding the ogres, you could tell me what happened in there..."
"Nice try."
"Please?"
"No."
"Tch... I’m no longer jealous of your skin."
"...Okay?" Serika chuckled, finding this unhinged bitch really amusing.
Elisabeth had been edging toward the exit since before the gate opened. "I should return to the Church. There are duties that require my presence, and I cannot simply..."
A soul soldier stepped in the doorway and bowed to the Dawn Breaker with practiced formality. "A room has been prepared on the second floor for you at Lady Lucille’s request."
Elisabeth stopped. Her expression carried every objection in the world, and the necromantic soldier’s calm hospitality sank every last one.
"No, I can’t..."
"I understand," the summon nodded.
But then the woman’s eyes found Quinlan, who was currently busy staring at his girls’ retreating backs... and lower halves... with far too infuriating of a grin.
"... I... Don’t... Haaah... One night," she said stiffly, and followed the soldier without looking back.
Two of the mansion’s maids approached as the room thinned.
"My lord, shall we prepare for dinner?"
"I don’t know how many will eat, but yes. Today was a big day, so please go all out. Everyone deserves to feast to their heart’s content. And also warm the baths for anyone who wants them."
Both women beamed, having been given the mission to not just take care of their victorious ladies who wrote history today, but also their Lord’s first real guests. It was a task of paramount importance. Failure wasn’t an option.
They bowed to Quinlan and hurried off with the energy of people who’d been waiting all day for permission to work, despite having worked all day.
The room settled.
Quinlan leaned against the wall and let the sounds of his girls’ happy chirping wash over him as they left one after the other.
Ayame hadn’t moved.
Her eyes were on Kaede.
The younger Fujimori looked up from the corner, and their gazes met.
Ayame held it, steady and level, and the part of her that used to tremble at the sight of her sister didn’t stir for the very first time.
A big step forward.
Kaede, however, was anything but steady.
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