“Wait – I can change the names of the floors?” Zeke asked aloud, his hand still on the control crystal that allowed him access to the administrative functions of the Crimson Tower.

“It appears so,” said Eveline. Zeke had released [Bulwark of the Triumvirate], letting her free. So, she had manifested her illusory form as a succubus. He still wasn’t certain whether or not it was reflective of her true body’s appearance – not that it mattered, really. But it would have been nice to see the real Eveline, as opposed to whatever it was she wanted him to see.

The real question, though, was if her appearance – which was, despite its clearly demonic nature, quite distracting – was the result of simple vanity or an attempt to manipulate him in some way. The fact that she was a succubus suggested the latter, but Zeke had long since learned that his perception of the world was not always accurate. Sometimes, his thoughts were influenced by meaningless Earth norms that didn’t apply to his new reality. Still, it took an effort of willpower not to stare at her curvaceous form, especially when it was encapsulated by a form-hugging black dress. Even the sight of her cloven hooves failed to ruin the effect.

“I’ll have you know that my hooves are considered quite fetching,” she huffed.

“I’m sure,” Zeke muttered, forcing his mind onto other matters. Like the increased control he now enjoyed with his tower. Not only could he rename the floors, but he could also regulate access to the cellar. Or even parts of the storage space, he’d discovered. If he wanted, he could make all the food and other mundane supplies available to the kobolds, while keeping the more valuable ore, armor, and weapons separate. That same restricted access could be applied to the rest of the tower, too, but that wasn’t so surprising. He’d already subconsciously done so with his manor, and it only took a thought to do the same with other parts of the tower.

Case in point, he’d already restricted the former slaves – aside from Jasper, of course – to the newly renamed Entry Hall. There, they had plenty of space to make a temporary camp and enjoy the benefits of getting out of the cold. Zeke had only allowed the most grievously injured to use the Crimson Spring.

It wasn’t that he wanted the former slaves to suffer. He didn’t. The issue was that he knew he could only trust a few of them. Eta and Jasper came immediately to mind, but he hoped a few others – at least – would join his cause. Until they made their choice, Zeke knew he couldn’t trust them with free reign of the tower.

The kobolds were a different story altogether. Zeke had made a deal with Mikaena, and as such, he’d assumed responsibility for their well-being. So, he felt obligated to give them as much help as he could. To that end, he’d given them access to every level except the Lord’s Manor.

And that access had already begun to bear fruit. Not only had they started to repurpose some of the materials Zeke had in his storage space to make better weapons and armor, but they’d also cultivated a few farms that he hoped would soon begin to feed the displaced population of lizard people.

“You know they only work hard because most of them aren’t entirely sapient,” Eveline pointed out. “They literally can’t think of anything else to do, so they focus on survival. That means food. Weapons. Armor. They have no culture.”

“I think Silik and some of the spiritweavers are sapient,” Zeke said, his hand still on the crystal.

“Perhaps. Monsters are a difficult thing to predict,” Eveline responded, leaning close. Zeke could almost feel the heat wafting off of her – a trick of the mind, he knew, and not even a very convincing one, but it was still effective. “Progression into sapience is tricky. Intelligence isn’t enough. They need identity, and not just one foisted upon them by someone more powerful. I think that’s what the wyrm failed to understand.”

“What do you mean?”

“She gave them all the tools,” she explained. “Society. Intelligence. A purpose. But she couldn’t give them an identity that wasn’t tied to her.”

“So, how do I fix that? How do succeed where she failed?”

“She didn’t fail. She just didn’t have the right ingredient to push them over the edge,” Eveline stated. “Because she had neither the opportunity nor the desire to do what every mother needs to do. If they wanted to progress into a sapient race, she had to cut them loose. She needed to send them away.”

“But until now, the dwarves were in the way.”

“And her own love for them,” Eveline added. “Or perhaps it was simple attachment. Who can know for sure?”

Zeke did. From everything he had seen, Mikaena had loved her kobolds like they were her own biological children.

“Ah, but what was the origin of that love?” Eveline asked. “Love is always spoken of in such grand terms, but is it any different than any other emotion born of selfishness?”

“Love isn’t selfish.”

“Of course it is. Everything we do can be traced back to that,” Eveline stated. “Being in love – and being loved – makes you feel valid and wanted and a hundred other positive emotions. There are biological responses that support that, but it’s all emotional manipulation. Sometimes, the manipulator is an outside source, but most of the time, we’re the real culprit of our own self-delusion.”

Zeke sighed. He’d heard it all before. Even though he’d lived anything but a full life before his death, he was still mature enough to recognize that Earth was home to a lot of cynical views on love. But he refused to believe any of it. The very idea that what he’d felt for his mother and brother originated with a selfishness was just offensive in a way he couldn’t quite articulate. It was as if that reductive notion cheapened the true nature of love and relationships.

“You think that now, but that’s because you can’t see into other peoples’ minds,” she said. “Even before I was detached from my body, I was an empath. I saw what really drove people. Even when they thought they were doing things for all the right reasons, I could see down to the core of it all. And I’ll tell you right now, Zeke – it’s never pretty or pure. Love is just a pretty name for self-gratification.”

“I think this is one of those situations where we’re going to have to agree to disagree,” Zeke said. Eveline’s opinions weren’t surprising. In fact, Zeke would have been more shocked to find that she saw the world in any other way. After all, she’d lived for centuries – or so she had implied – in the demon realm amidst nothing but the worst of the worst who’d been further manipulated into embracing every terrible facet of their personalities. Of course she would have a negative view of the world.

But Zeke also knew that she wouldn’t be easily persuaded to believe otherwise, so it was better to simply drop the subject and move on. So, he asked, “You think them leaving Tisikana will be the catalyst to bring the entire race into sapience?”

“Perhaps. But it’s still going to be difficult,” Eveline answered. “You can’t be Mikaeana’s replacement. You have to guide and protect them, but you also need to give them room to find their own way. It’s a fine line to walk.”

If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

“I could see that.”

“Plus, you need to give some thought to how you want them to develop,” she added. “They are strong. A great base, really. But if you want them to flourish, they need options. That’s where the tower comes in. And this quest.”

Zeke nodded, then once again looked at the quest he’d received from the tower itself:

Quest Attained! Gather natural treasures representing the nine major classifications of mana. Fire, Ice, Water, Earth, Wind, Nature, Arcane, Poison, and Disease. Reward: Hall of Affinity.

It wasn’t a complicated task – not on the surface, at least – but he suspected that actually accomplishing it would be much more difficult than understanding what was required. Zeke had only seen a few natural treasures since ascending, and according to Eveline, none of those had been particularly powerful. If he wanted optimal results, he’d need to find true representations of each of the attunements.

“Any ideas on where we can find these different natural treasures?” Zeke asked.

“You absorbed one back in the First City,” Eveline stated. “That dwarven king’s spirit wasn’t really alive, you know. None of them were. They were just blobs of earth-attuned mana. That remnant of the king’s soul was simply strong enough to have carried with it some of his Will and a few of his memories.”

“What about the rest of him?”

She tilted her head to the side and said, “I’m not sure what you mean.”

“I mean, like – what about his…I don’t know,” Zeke said. “You don’t wonder what will happen to us when we die? Like, is there another world after this? Or is it just nothing.”

“Nothing, I hope. Otherwise, it will inevitably be something horrible.”

Zeke wasn’t so sure what he believed. In the past, the answer to that question would have been easy – especially in light of his rebirth into the Radiant Isles. It wasn’t so difficult to imagine another layer to existence. Where there were two, there could easily be a third. Or a fourth, even. Perhaps death was just a gateway to each successive reality. But now? He had no idea what to think.

More, he couldn’t decide whether an end was such a bad thing. Certainly, he had no wish to die and cease to exist, but after seeing what had been done to the people that had become demons, Zeke couldn’t help but wonder if such an end would be a bad thing – especially in their cases.

That Eveline would hope for one was imminently understandable.

“Putting those maudlin thoughts aside – it’s clear what you need to do,” Eveline said. “You need to focus on this quest.”

“I don’t plan to ignore it,” Zeke said. When Eveline began to speak, he cut her off before she could say a word. “But I’m not leaving my friends out there all alone. I’m going to find Talia and Tucker first. Then, we can get those natural treasures.”

Eveline looked thoughtful, but then she said, “Very well. You’re obviously stuck on this friendship thing. Silly, but it’s your life. However, I would be remiss if I didn’t point out that you’re stuck in the middle of a frozen tundra. Surely, there’s an opportunity there. Perhaps an icy opportunity. Hint. Hint.”

Zeke groaned, “That’s terrible. Like, really terrible.”

“Not my fault I have to beat you over the head with all the subtlety of a charging raktaron.”

“To I want to know what a raktaron is?”

“Huge creatures. Seven sharp horns. They were native to my world before…you know, death and demonhood slapped me across the face. In any case, they’re big, strong, and incredibly stupid,” she said with a smirk. “Kind of like a certain someone I know.”

“I don’t –”

“You. That someone is you.”

“I got that.”

“Are you sure? Sometimes I have to spell it out.”

Zeke rolled his eyes, and Eveline smirked. He knew she didn’t really mean her insults, and in a lot of ways, they reminded him of Abby’s friendly banter. Probably why she did it; what better way to put him off his guard than to give him something familiar? In any case, it hadn’t bothered him with Abby, and he certainly wouldn’t allow a little ribbing to affect him now.

After a few moments, he asked, “You think I should rename the Residential District? Maybe give it a little less generic name?”

“Like?”

“I don’t know. Tisikana maybe?”

“Wouldn’t really help with the whole separation thing,” Eveline reminded. “I don’t disagree with the idea, but I think it would be better if it was something entirely new, though. Zeketown perhaps.”

“Ugh.”

“Ezekielville?”

“That’s just terrible.”

She shrugged her illusory shoulders and said, “Just trying to appeal to your inner simpleton. Oh – that’s a good one. Simpleton. Very evocative.”

“I hate you,” Zeke muttered.

“But in all seriousness – let them choose the name,” she suggested. “It will give them ownership and establish a culture independent of their former lives.”

“Makes sense,” Zeke said. “I’ll talk to Silik.”

“And the spiritweaver with those colorful plumes,” Eveline said. “She seems to have a position of some authority. Besides, you rarely see one without the other these days.”

That was true. Zeke couldn’t remember the spiritweaver’s name, but she rarely left Silik’s side. Perhaps they were siblings. Or mates. Zeke wasn’t familiar enough with kobold culture to differentiate between the two types of relationships. In any case, consulting Silik and the spiritweavers – who’d functioned as religious leaders among their people – was a good idea.

As to the other most urgent issue, Zeke was less certain. Many of the former slaves would doubtless wish to go their own way. Some, because they were independent spirits. Others because they weren’t comfortable living in close proximity with the monstrous kobolds. And still others because they wanted to go back to their former lives. But Zeke anticipated that there were enough that would want to stay that he needed to establish how he wanted to deal with them.

To that end, Zeke left the control crystal behind and headed to the Entry Hall. Along the way, Eveline retreated into his mind, and he reactivated [Bulwark of the Triumvirate]. Of course, she grumbled about being confined, but it was as much for her good as it was his. Not only did the mental skill defend him against outside intrusion, but it also served to protect her from curious observers as well as hostilities. Because without that barrier in place, she was incredibly vulnerable to anyone with the right skills.

Zeke didn’t think there were any mentalists – or priests – among the former slaves, but that didn’t mean they weren’t there. Most of the slaves had kept their pasts to themselves, and so, not even Jasper – who had the most experience wrangling them – knew their histories or skills. So, he had no choice but to remain as careful as he could, because he suspected that anyone powerful enough to harm Eveline would probably make quick work of his own mind.

As they searched for Jasper, Zeke asked Eveline, “So, what do you know about these hidden attunements? Holy and demonic. I didn’t think there were actual gods in this world, so the word holy feels…I don’t know. Wrong.”

“There may be gods. Just not in this realm or the next.”

“Still – what do you know about the holy attunement?”

“I know that it’s a bit of a misnomer,” she answered. “It’s more about faith than it is about godliness.”

“Explain.”

“Okay, so say you have a shrine, and for hundreds of years, people go to that shrine to pray” she said. “Each prayer carries with it a little bit of mana, and slowly, that shrine becomes empowered. But it doesn’t stop with simple mana infusion. That mana has a distinct flavor. It’s subtle, but it’s there all the same.”

“Faith.”

“Just so,” she said. “But it’s more than that. It’s hope. Faith. And devotion. It eventually taints the ambient mana, resulting in a holy attunement. And that shrine, as a conduit and subject of that faith, becomes a natural treasure.”

“And demonic attunement?”

“I think you know,” she stated. “Pain and torment, greed and gluttony. There are many ways it forms, but do not make the mistake of thinking that you can only find it in the demon realm. It’s here, too. Heaven has no shortage of sin. But to find a truly powerful demonic natural treasure, you will almost certainly have to return to Hell.”

“Sounds fun,” Zeke deadpanned.

“What was that?” asked Jasper, who they’d finally found near a huddle of refugees.

Zeke hadn’t even realized he’d spoken aloud, but he quickly adapted, saying, “Nothing. Never mind. How are things?”

The dark elf didn’t even have a chance to answer before Zeke took in the state of the former slaves. This particular group was the lowest of the low, meaning that each of them had already surrendered to their fate. That they’d been rescued and set free didn’t seem to make much difference.

“Good news and bad, my friend,” Jasper said, raking a hand through his white hair. He’d given it a thorough cleaning since entering the tower, but it was still ragged from where the ends had been burned off during the dark elf’s time spent in the forge. “Which would you like to hear first?”

“Good.”

“Well, our fellows have begun to recover,” he answered with a jovial tone. “They are growing stronger by the day.”

“That’s good. What’s the bad news?”

“They are also beginning to wonder why they are following you,” Jasper stated. “There are rumor that some of the more powerful will attempt a coup and take this fantastic tower from you.”

Zeke sighed. “Great. Just great. It’s never easy, is it?”

“No, my friend. It most certainly is not.”

“There’s that selfishness I was talking about,” Eveline pointed. Zeke pointedly ignored her as he turned his mind to solving the problem at hand.