Skera and I were waiting at the door of her office when she opened the door. “Come in! It’s so nice when the three of us can just sit down and enjoy what little tea we have left.” Tali cheerfully said.

“My Lady, a simple brute like me has no right to waste your precious tea! I shall stand guard instead!” Skera stiffly replied. Sigh, the tomboy in her was as strong as her sword swings.

“Oh come on Skera, there’s nothing wrong with enjoying something feminine once in a while with your friends.” I dismissively said as I gingerly walked the chair in her office. My husband sure gave it to me last night. I could still feel some of his warmth inside of me. Whew, the very memory of my wedding night got me a bit flushed.

Tali poured tea into 3 cups and waved us over. Skera, ever the dutiful Knight, obeyed her liege. We sat down on the chairs and began to enjoy our teatime, just like before the exodus.

“So Emma, how was life as a married woman?” Tali asked contently as she gracefully sipped on her tea.

I raised my eyebrow at her. “Tali, surely you didn’t call us over for bedroom gossip?”

Tali pouted. “Oh come on! I am buried in paperwork all day! Give me something juicy or I’m making you both help out!”

“What a blatant abuse of power, my Lady.” I replied indignantly. “Aren’t you training clerks for this kind of stuff anyways?”

“The kids aren’t ready yet, so I’m stuck with all of this work for now.” Tali sighed. “So, tell us Emma! At the rate things are going, you might end up as the only married woman here. Pity us spinsters!”

Skera looked surprisingly happy(?) at the prospect. Hmm…

I chuckled at her plea. “Let’s just say my husband knows what he’s doing. Gods, it was the best night of my life, and that was with the traitor in the room and ruining the mood. I imagine tonight will be even better now that we’re rid of him.”

Skera finally spoke up. “Did he tell you why he released the traitor in the Wild, only to hunt him down later?”

Now it was my turn to sigh. “No, he hasn’t. Rummy came home late last night and went straight to bed. But he did tell me that he planned to tell us everything in tomorrow’s meeting.”

“So what’s he doing now?” Skera asked.

“Designing something. Something…big.” I answered. “Something that’d make the Lady Vengeance look like a toothpick in comparison.”

Skera furrowed her brows. “I don’t like it. That monstrosity killed hundreds of Knights and retainers in mere minutes, and he wants to forge something worse than that!? What threats could possibly warrant that kind of weaponry? No sane Legion would ever dare cross the Wilds just for us.”

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

Tali finished her tea and set down the cup. “Rummy knows we don’t have the resources to build things out of vanity, and he’s practical enough to acknowledge that. I suppose we’ll know what threats loom in our future tomorrow.”

Well, now that we’re done talking about depressing topics, it was time to put my plan in motion. After a gentle sip of my fragrant earl grey tea, I casually asked. “Hey Tali, what do you think of Rummy?”

Tali looked at me weirdly. “I think he is the smartest person in this town. Somebody who always delivers what he promised. A decent man with a respectable code of honor.”

“No, Tali. What do you think of him as a man?” I grinned.

A slight blushed graced a slightly flustered face. “What…what are you suggesting?” She looked so cute trying to hide that blush! My harem plan was off to a good start!

“If you want a husband, I doubt you'd find a more qualified man in this town.” I smugly suggested. “Plus, he’s always looking for more wives for his harem~”

Skera didn’t take that suggestion well. “Preposterous! That lowlife isn’t fit to clean the dirt off of Lady Natalia’s shoes! She angrily interjected.” And even if he was a noble or a Knight, I wouldn’t trust that scoundrel around our Lady.”

I smirked. “Oh come off it, Skera. I know he’d earned your respect that night when he slayed the Tyrant. You were ready to perform Last Rites on him had he died. How many men in your life can you say that for?”

“Wish that horny bastard did die.” She halfheartedly muttered.

“And who’d be building the town? You?” I scoffed. “Not to mention I’d be condemned to a life where my sole source of pleasure would come from an overused stone pestle.”

Tali giggled as Skera scowled.

“Tali, I know you and Rummy have a lot more in common than what meets the eyes. There’s a mutual friendship between you two.” I continued my sales pitch.

“That may be true, but that doesn’t mean I should marry him.” Tali calmly refuted.

“Friendship is the basis of a good marriage.” I added. “Well, just something to think about. After all, somebody has to rule this town after you. And my children will likely be too busy building those monstrosities that Rummy is designing right now…” I patted my belly as I finished the pitch.

“Emma, why are you so insistent on this?” Skera pointedly asked.

“Firstly, somebody has to think of the distant future of this city. Also, if I have to share my husband with other women, I’d rather share it with people I trust. I’ve seen enough harem infighting in the Galahad households to know that without trust, there is no harem.” I replied.

I stared into their eyes. “I want you two here with me. I want us to be happy together. Nobody has to die a lonely spinster if that’s not what you want. I’d be honored to share Rummy with you two. Besides, I want our children to be friends and comrades in this messed-up world. That way, they won’t ever be lonely like I was before I met you.”

That argument seemed to work. Skera didn’t seem as hostile to the idea as before. Tali was deep in thought. Success! Today was just about planting the seed of possibility in their subconscious. I just had to give them time to grow and bear fruit. After all, I’m in it for the long haul.

Sure, it was a little manipulative of me to start a harem faction, but this was for Rummy’s benefit as well. I didn’t think Rummy wasn’t the type of man who’d brutally impose his will on his harem just to get them to play nicely. And even if he did do that, he couldn’t possibly monitor us around the clock, not with his busy work schedule. So if infighting ever broke out, he’d be pretty helpless; and we’d all be in for a bad time at home. My plan to be the dominant established faction would keep the peace, not to mention give me the peace of mind. Like I’ve said. I’m in it for the long haul.

Well, assuming whatever threats that scared Rummy badly enough to make him design doomsday weapons (like this “nuke” he kept muttering on about in his sleep) didn’t kill us first…