"Why are you nervous?" Ren ughed as she walked out of the bathroom with only a towel on while Leinor stood before the window, watching the night sky.

  "Why are you not?" He sighed, asking with a smile.

  "Because it will be fun!" She giggled, "A few days ago, you didn't even flinch facing Yurik, and now? You can't sit properly. What, you don't want to marry me?"

  "Of course I do!" He turned around immediately, only to be met with a Ren standing before him without anything to cover herself with. "Ah..."

  "Fufufu, at least your expression is honest~! Like what you see~?"

  "Um…" He nodded by instinct

  "Then think about this when you get anxious. Rex, tomorrow you will make me yours; I'm looking forward to it~!" She snuggled up to him, leaning against his chest.

  It was not only Leinor who could not sleep that evening. Ren's parents, especially Anya, had a sleepless night, excited about their daughter's wedding day. As for Leinor's family, back in the pace, Dermitos had just arrived, finally meeting with Carthus and Aerthus.

  "You are back. How are you feeling?" The Forefather asked as he patted his shoulder.

  "I'm fine now. I had to air out my head a little." Dermitos smiled at him with a bit of reservation.

  "I understand... Still. You should rejoice; tomorrow, you will marry off your son."

  "Why does it sound weird?" both Carthus and Dermitos asked at the same time.

  "What? It's true, tell me if not. Do you think the girl will be the one to marry into your family?" Aerthus smirked while asking, shaking his head.

  "No." Their answer came, once again, in sync, letting out a long sigh.

  "See?" Aerthus ughed again, "And... After tomorrow comes another big day. Because I will host a meeting with everyone important, including the kids. So be ready! We will start building my Sect!"

  "Yes." Both of his descendants nodded simultaneously, clearly excited about the idea, looking at each other and expecting a whole new chapter in their lives.

  …….…..

  When morning came, the city was swept away again by a festive mood, almost like when Feynor got crowned. The main oath-taking would take pce at noon, right before the pace, at the same pce where Feynor was made into Aerthus X just a few days ago. Saynur and Frenir were already at their designated spot, close to where the young pair were going to stand, so Saynur could paint the greatest portrait of his life. While everyone was getting ready back home, including Ren and Leinor, the tter was finally called back to the pace, as customs decred.

  While he was getting ready, at the pce of Reignar, Orsi almost had a panic attack upon hearing the news.

  "B-but Young Master… I have no clothes I can wear! I…”

  "Rex, little one." Reignar smiled at her, "I already went and ordered clothes that will fit you. I'll take you there, but first, we will have a bath; we need to look fresh, it's my brother's wedding. And we need to be there!"

  “B-but… I… I am… just…”

  "We went through this a dozen times already." Reignar said as he rubbed her tiny head, You are my maid now, and you will always follow me around, no?"

  "I did not know you were a prince..." Orsi said, panic in her voice, as Reignar just kept gently massaging her head.

  "Easy! You are overthinking everything. Again... It will cause a headache. Just take it one at a time. We take a bath. You get dressed, then follow me out. We will have a good time, then come home and sleep. Got it?" Reignar asked, while his energies were slowly easing the developing headache in Orsi's head.

  “Ah… U… um… y-yes…”

  "Good. Now let's take the first step, okay?"

  "Y-yes, Young Master!"

  After a slight nod, she followed him to the bathroom and enjoyed as her Young Master took care of her, and when she was cleaned up, she got dressed in a silk, expensive-looking, golden-colored gown, the same color as Reignar's own clothes. When they arrived at the square, joining Dermitos and Feynor, Orsi was overwhelmed once again and almost lost her composure. She needed Reignar to stand behind her, gently massaging her head, making her rex whenever her little mind got too busy, causing her pain.

  "You look good." Fenyor chuckled, accompanied by their father, who smiled and gave them a slight nod.

  "I know. This dress makes-" He started to ramble, but Feynor just cut in.

  "I did not mean you, idiot. I meant her!"

  "Huh?" both Reignar and Orsi asked at the same time, with the same tone and tilting their heads at the same time to the same side.

  "He is right." Dermitos chuckled, "Maybe you only needed a child to make you grow up and start acting like an adult."

  "..." Reignar blinked his eyes but stayed silent, not commenting, taking a step back in his mind, looking over his life so far... having to agree with them.

  "Don't think about it." Dermitos patted his shoulder, repeating the exact words that Reignar was telling Orsi constantly. "I love all of you the same."

  "Father…" both answered at the same time as they felt their father's aura was different; they couldn't pce their finger on what or why, but clearly something had happened that had a significant impact on him.

  "Only our second brother did not come back." Reignar sighed after a bit of silence as they sat down at their pce, still having time before the ceremony. Of course, Orsi took the seat right next to him, silently grabbing the edges of her dress, lowering her red face, feeling out of pce, and being constantly nervous.

  "Don't worry, Lil' Bro won't take it to heart. We all know how he is." Feynor chuckled, looking at the crowd.

  "Your Second Brother is at the edge of breaking through. I understand his decision." Dermitos expined, "The kids will do so too."

  "Oh?" Feynor smiled, hearing the news, "It's good to hear! You were the youngest among us to start training until Fourth Brother." He looked at Reignar in the meantime, "Now you are almost the st. You need to pick up the pace; you wasted too many years going around having fun and not cultivating properly."

  "Hey, it was not just fun but also my way of cultivation!" Reignar retorted, "Hmph..."

  "Rex, I know!" He grinned, enjoying teasing his little brother, before Dermitos suddenly added, sounding serious.

  "The higher you climb, the slower it will be for you to bance that much affinity. Maybe you should have a long session talking about it with Ren..."

  "No thanks. That girl is dangerous!" he rolled his eyes at once, while Orsi noted his words, wondering why his Young Master always spoke like this, mentioning the soon-to-be princess... Was she really that scary?

  "It wouldn't hurt. Don't be a chicken." Feynor smirked, making their father speak again.

  "There will be other options. Tomorrow evening, you two shall accompany me."

  "What for?" Both of them looked at him with questions in their eyes.

  "You will know." Dermitos smiled mysteriously but said no more.

  …….…..

  When noon came, the decorated square was filled with white, lic, and golden colored flowers as Leinor stood beside his father, wearing a white, formal suit adorned with golden edges and a dragon symbol on his shoulders, representing the imperial family's crest. The crowd, who was excited beyond reason, quickly quieted as Ren appeared with her parents, smiling from far away at Leinor. She was dressed in a long, orchid-colored dress, outlining her petite figure, leaving her fair shoulders bare as her long, silver hair flowed behind her like a beautiful veil, acting as a cape while she took proud steps towards him.

  "Look at her; Leinor has a wild night before him!" Isha giggled, standing near Saynur, who was painting, giving his all while only focusing on the pair and his work, excluding everything else.

  "You never thought about dressing up the same way?" Zern asked.

  "Mmm… when I was little, I dreamt about it, but now? No. It lost its meaning for me." She sighed with a somewhat sad voice.

  "A red dress would look good on you, though." He added as he softly grabbed her hand.

  "Maybe. I can dress up for you if it excites you~!"

  "Do that."

  "Ahahaha~ Okay~!" Isha giggled, leaning on him, "We can try that."

  "This ceremony is… interesting," Emi also commented, who was standing on one of the pace's balconies next to Poli and Niji.

  "It's customary here." Poli expined, "It dispys the highest show of affection by promising yourself to your partner for life."

  "Most of the demons also choose partners for life," Niji added, who was used to simir events while living in the Kingdom, enjoying the view with a cup of wine in his hand.

  "It depends on the tribe." Emi corrected him.

  "What about yours?" Poli asked with interest.

  "Our tribe is 80% female. We share the males because too few of them are born compared to females." Emi expined.

  "Whoa!" Poli sighed in surprise. "Great!"

  "Stop your thoughts, or I'll castrate you." She snorted, looking at him with snted eyes.

  "Ahaha, go easy on the kid Emi." Niji ughed, patting Poli's back, who was still immersed in his little fantasy of being a male fox at the tribe.

  "Those idiots." Ren smiled as she walked, easily reading her friends' lips as she slowly stepped up to Leinor.

  "You look beautiful…." He whispered while she just smiled even more happily, radiating warmth all around her.

  "I know~!"

  "Hah!" Dermitos and Xendar chuckled simultaneously while everyone took their pce, and the youngsters stood side by side, facing Feynor, the current Emperor, Aerthus X.

  "This would be the time I would hold a long speech about how beautiful the young pair is!" Feynor spoke up as everyone could hear his voice, no matter where they were, "But I know my little sister's temperament," he smiled at her while Ren stuck out her tongue. "I only have one question for both of you!" Feynor looked into their eyes, holding a slight pause before continuing, "Will you love the other until death, never abandoning each other, forming a family from now on until the end?"

  "Yes," the answer came simultaneously from between their lips, with no hesitation.

  "Then, from now on, let it be known you are not a pair anymore, but One." He held their hands and pced them together. "Never to be separated again."

  Ren gently held onto Leinor's hands before tiptoeing, and when they shared a kiss, the crowd burst into loud cheering, ready for the true celebrations to begin.

  "Don't cry!" Anya whispered, with a happy smile, tears in her eyes, elbowing her husband.

  "Who does?" Xendar snorted, but his voice cracked, clearly trying to hold back his tears, pursing his lips.

  "Ahaha, we can share a drink tonight!" Dermitos patted his shoulders. "I told you once! We will be one family! And now we are."

  "Bastard…" He murmured, sniffing back his tears while Anya just leaned on him, watching her daughter.

  "At least watch your tongue at your daughter's wedding… Stupid." She whispered, tears in her eyes, yet her voice was as happy as one could be.

  Just then, Saynur had finished his painting, capturing the moment of the kiss in a way no one else could. Looking at it, the picture gave off an otherworldly feeling. It was as if it radiated light, not just because the sun's rays fell on the still-wet paint, but because it was filled with his own energies.

  "My best work…." Saynur choked as he stepped back, almost falling to his knees, while his hands were trembling, barely holding onto the brush.

  "Whoa, big brother! This looks lifelike! I also feel weird watching it…." Frenir furrowed his small eyebrows.

  "W-weird?" Saynur flinched, fearing he had messed up something.

  "Um! I like feeling warm and calm as I watch it! It's a good feeling!" Frenir nodded his head, trying to figure it out... but he couldn't really grasp it.

  "It's probably just your imagination." He shook his head, looking proudly at his work, "I hope Lady Anya will also like it!"

  "Sure she will! But come now, brother!"

  "What? Where? Why?"

  "It's going to be a party! There are a lot of delicacies... If we do not hurry, it will be gone!" He grabbed onto his clothes, starting to pull on him.

  "Ahaha… you!" He ughed, "Okay, let me get my bearings for a moment, and we can go. I can't believe we are invited to the pace directly…." He sighed, still overwhelmed as he stood on the pace's grounds, never before allowed here as a commoner.

  In the end, the party after the wedding, both outside and inside the pace, went on until the evening. It was nearly midnight when Ren held onto Leinor's arm, leading him away to the bedchamber inside the pace, while being wet from top to bottom, gasping for air as her dress stuck to her body, just like Leinor's did.

  "I told you I could dance for hours!" Leinor ughed, closing the door behind him.

  "Yeah, yeah, be proud; you beat me! Big deal!" She giggled, kicking off her shoes before tearing her dress at her legs.

  "What are you doing?"

  "I can't wait anymore!" She jumped on him, pushing Leinor onto the bed, mounting him, sharing a wild, deep kiss, and overwhelming him with her powers. "You may win the dance competition, LeiLei, but now it's time for an encore… be ready, my dear husband…." She licked his lips with her tongue while grabbing onto his clothes, tearing them off him. "I can also do it for hours!"

  …….…..

  "How high would you put her on the list?"

  The calm, measured voice that echoed in the library, far, far away from the celebrations, was King Rudrick's. In a tower, within the Naulin's home city, he sat there, reading in the moonlight, only putting it down when he finally finished listening, and his eyes moved to gnce at Sentios. He tried to keep a calm face, but deep inside, his nervousness rose quickly, just as the storm that was already starting to rain began thundering in earnest. The King's outward appearance resembled that of someone in their mid-thirties, with short, silvery hair combed backward and deep, violet-colored eyes that pierced Sentios's gaze. Even when his aura was calm, Sentios knew the King before him was at the second level of the Harmony Realm, a rare feat in the family's lineage... both in the Naulins and the line of Aerthus.

  "In the top five, at least."

  "Oh? That high? Eborate." Rudrick smiled, tapping his fingers on the book he was reading.

  "She is sixteen. At the first level of Harmony... That alone warrants her pce in the top ten."

  "Continue."

  "She is a wild card and clearly influences the royal family's decision-making even though she is an outsider." He answered, straightening his back, "She created her own cultivation method as far as I gathered... and she is... strong. I had never felt something like that from anyone in the same realm. Also, as I concluded before, she may be behind their cooperation with the demon folk. She is a dangerous element."

  "Going by your reasoning, should she even repce Aerthus at the first rank?" Rudrick joked, shaking his head, "The cooperation with the demons is a votile business... Still, now we lost the first opportunity to intervene with an assassination. But knowing the demons, they won't stay allied for long..." he smirked as he looked out the window for a moment, watching the big city from the tall spire that was his personal abode.

  "I understand. As for pcing her at the first spot?" Sentios shook his head, "Mmm… Not yet. But we can consider that because Aerthus is still missing... About the new approach… What should we do?"

  "Start spreading rumors, hearsays, saying the Aerthus royal family is betraying humanity, that they are becoming willing sves of demons." Rudrick said, waving his hand, "They are nothing more than puppets for demons. You can work it out. I am not going to bother with that."

  "Will it work? That…”

  "It doesn't matter. It's only a rumor." He snorted, "But it always gets its followers. First, the stupid ones will love something like this. Then come those who live far away from the capital or were subject to demonic attacks before. They will also like it. Third, there will be the group that doesn't care; they can use it to their advantage against the royal family. It's mainly to cause trouble for them, even if it's just a small nuisance. Let it fester for a long time, and it will grow in size."

  "I'll see to it. I don't know how effective it will be, especially if she or my brother gets wind of it." Sentios bowed.

  "As I see, my great-granddaughter left a big impression on you, mm?" Rudrick asked, ughing.

  "..." Sentios, instead of answering, just thought silently a little before nodding.

  "Good. Now I'm interested! The problem is that her mother was exiled. That was a mistake..." Rudrick turned away from the window and went back to his book while his fingers moved to continue tapping on the table.

  "Y-yes…"

  "Speak freely; I was the one who gave the nod to the decision to be finalized. I'm not afraid of facing my mistakes." He smiled, but Sentios knew it did not mean he would not kill those who presented said mistakes to his face. "Heh..." Rudrick chuckled, shaking his head, "The only thing we did not anticipate was such a child to be born from a nobody and our bloodline's mixture. It proves our blood's dominance and purity; she inherited the looks of her ancestors and is more talented than anybody around her." He smiled arrogantly. "We need to devise a new way to acquire her back; diplomacy is no longer an option as it won't work."

  "No... It won't. I reyed her message already, my King." Sentios agreed, grimacing.

  "I heard it." He chuckled. "Fiesty little girl. Then we will use force and break her!"

  "Pardon?"

  "Did I stutter?" Rudrick stopped his tapping finger, and the sudden pause in the rhythmic knocking was as if a battering ram hit Sentios's nerves, making him dizzy.

  "No, my King." He grunted, holding back a cough.

  "I thought so." Rudrick spoke, still with the same calm voice, continuing the tapping on the wooden surface of his desk, dispelling the sudden pressure, "We will sabotage her life, break her down, her mentality, drag her from the clouds onto the ground." He expined, as his fingers kept hitting the hardwood surface, which resonated through the library and Sentios, evoking primal dread inside of him. "First, her friends must die. Make her angry. Then her family. One by one. Make her not just enraged, but let her thinking crumble as she slowly loses everyone around her, making her commit mistake after mistake. We will break her in, and after she can't think straight, we will catch her. If necessary, she can do without legs or arms; I don't care."

  "But…" Sentios said with a dry mouth and parched lips, but as Rudrick looked at him, he forgot to gulp down his remaining saliva, letting it spill out.

  "I don't care about her talent. I want her bloodline." Rudrick expined, "As long as she can breed, the rest doesn't matter. I'll make her bear children and raise new talents. She can be blessed to be a mother; it's more than what she deserves."

  "Y-yes…" Sentios nodded, wiping his mouth, wanting to do nothing more but escape... but he knew he couldn't. Not with the invisible leash on his neck.

  "Good. Go now, gather a group who can infiltrate the Empire, and I want to know everything about her and her companions." He waved a hand at him, "I don't care how many years it will take. Gather all information you can, down to the color she likes and how often she turns in bed while sleeping. Then we will move on to the next phase."

  "Wouldn't it start a war?"

  "War?" Rudrick ughed loudly. "No, it won't. Do you think any of your family is willing to start a war for someone who is not even part of their bloodline directly? Even more… What if one of the princes dies? I know Carthus is still well and alive. He and other old veterans wouldn't let a war break out. Just look at yourself..." He smirked, looking into his eyes, "You are my little pdog, and yet nobody came to free you... Your family is like ours, and doesn't care for failures."

  "And if Aerthus comes back one day?" Sentios asked, trying to compose himself.

  "Our Forefather would face him!" He snorted, "You heard his voice; he has been in the third realm for hundreds of years now, and even if the old menace comes back, it means nothing before him!"

  "Understood. What about Yurik and the rest?"

  "Nothing." The King grunted, annoyed, "They are probably dead or captured. They stayed back because Yurik is an idiot. His line always was filled with disappointments, first his sister, now him; the rest of those siblings are talentless dregs." Rudrick continued while stopping the knocking on the table for good. "Make it public; the line of Yurik is stripped of everything reted to the throne. He is now a wanted person for betraying my orders! Kill on sight! Same with the rest of his family line. Execute them."

  "A-all of them?" Sentios stuttered.

  "You are asking me a lot of questions today, Sentios." he raised his voice a little, which made him take a few steps back. "I said kill. All. Of. Them. I have multiple lines of such idiots; if one branch falls off the tree, it helps the growth of the rest."

  "Understood." He nodded, feeling lightheaded.

  "Good! Now go. You are starting to annoy me."

  Sentios only bowed before quickly hurrying out, while Rudrick just opened up the book again, continuing the reading in a happy mood with a rexed smile.

  "Oh. Maybe I should make her mine for the first few dozen years. Some new, strong children of mine would make our family strong. The rest can have their turn after that. Mmm… yeah, I should do that." Rudrick murmured with a broad smile, flipping the pages in the book as the storm started to rage outside, washing away the screaming and flowing blood that soon followed after his orders began to be carried out.