The atmosphere relaxed further, and we began jesting about life as new feudal lords. A barony, we mused, would undoubtedly boast a couple of bustling villages dedicated to serving it. Naturally, we envisioned our barony as the most progressive and people-friendly in the world, yet we anticipated living in luxury and being waited on hand and foot. As we continued discussing the perks of baronial life, the 'treacherous' elf unexpectedly interjected, attempting to dampen our spirits.

“This won't fly,” she declared.

I arched an eyebrow and sighed. “And why's that?” I inquired.

She huffed impatiently. “I have one question: who's going to present that token?”

I shrugged. “Well, obviously me, since it's technically mine!” I replied, surprised by her skepticism.

She chuckled derisively. “Have you looked in a mirror lately? Hero or not, the King won't simply hand over a barony to a demon, don't you think? Do you really believe that any illusion tricks would work inside the royal palace?”

I was left breathless, realizing I had completely overlooked this 'minor and insignificant' detail: that I was a demon. As I turned to Alice seeking help, the elf raised a brow inquiringly.

“Do you think Alice would do?” she asked, but Alice shook her head.

“I've shared with you about my grandfather and his studies. He was accused and prosecuted by the Twin's Church and found guilty of consorting with demons. The punishment extended for seven generations, prohibiting the family from using our name. That means no right to property. Though I'm not from Guarava, the Twin's Church has a presence here, too, and they may object to me using the token,” she explained with a shrug. “Anyone else would be a better choice.”

Julietta nodded. "That's what I began to suspect after you shared your grandfather's story."

I turned to her. “So, do you suggest you present the token?” I pondered.

“Me?” she chuckled. “Even if you were foolish enough to entrust me with the token, they would never accept it. An elf claiming a barony? Impossible. The land here was taken from the elves, so it would be seen as an attempt to reclaim it. No, it wouldn't work. Lynx would be excluded for the same reason, leaving us with Tina, but she's too young to make such a claim.”

“It's a little bit disappointing to hear that,” Lynx remarked with a smirk, “but I understand your reasoning.”

"So, we need to find a different solution. Selling the token might be necessary, but I'm worried it won't fetch a good price now, especially with the impending long winter," Julietta remarked, gesturing with her hands as if questioning what could be done.

"Hey, we're here too! Any of us could present the token!" Hew suggested.

Julietta sighed. "Sorry, boys, but none of you have any traces of magic in your veins. That instantly disqualifies you from any noble positions."

"But there were nobles with barely any magic!" I interjected, though not singling out Tina specifically.

Julietta shook her head. "There may be some, but they are born into nobility. This, by the way, often leads to the decline of their families, but that's another story. Here in Guarava, no one becomes a noble without significant magical abilities. You can't even become a knight! The kingdom prioritizes individuals with magical aptitude, and having magically gifted children can secure the family's long-term survival. These individuals are often promoted and serve in the army or as guards. Some are chosen by the church, and the most exceptional may even be elevated to minor aristocrats. Achieving barony status is a long journey, and only extraordinary deeds can bring it about."

"Is a token not the proof of extraordinary deeds? Non-magical people who do exceptional deeds are not rewarded?" Mike questioned.

"Of course, they are rewarded, but they cannot become nobles and thus cannot possess these huge properties. If you insist on presenting the token and Lores agrees with that, I am not sure how they will proceed at the royal court. You might get screwed. I guess that in the best case, you would receive the biggest possible property of a 'common person,' which is a family farm, and that's it. There is a lot of room for interpretation in these rules."

"Couldn't we just gain some levels? It seems so easy when playing the game," Mike wondered.

Julietta gently shook her head, considering the question. "You need to realize that this is no game, but the real world where you will risk your lives if you want to try that. You can't select a body with high aptitudes, as was the case in the game; your current body must suffice, which in about 99% of cases may just be the body of an average, ordinary person. We can try that, but it would be tough. I need to warn you that I've seen no special magic aptitudes in any of you so far. Besides, gaining some levels would not be enough!" Julietta stressed. "You need to achieve a level of power above the average."

As they exchanged glances, I raised my hand. "Okay, look at me; what do you see now?" I asked.

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At first, she seemed confused about what I was trying to say, but then she understood and attempted to identify me. I felt the magic pulse and saw her surprised expression.

"Okay, impressive illusions. I see nothing, and you do not identify as a demon, but entering the palace will dispel all your illusions!"

I was using one of Cala's skills. Cala used it all the time, so it was ingrained in my being.

I smiled, relieved to have found a solution and doubly pleased that Cala's skills were compatible with my magic.

“This is not an illusion. You know the dispel spell, don't you?” I asked. “Just cast it on me.”

She did. My horns appeared, okay, that was an illusion, but that was all. I had hidden them instinctively after so many days of having to conceal them, without even thinking about it.

“Okay, you have horns, but you're still not a demon. How is that possible? Plus, I cannot sense your power!” she asked, baffled.

My grin widened. I took a deep breath.

“If I knew, I would have used this skill when we visited you. Then nothing of this would have happened, and we would still be on Earth!”

“I would have still dispelled your illusions and seen your horns...” she answered, diminishing my enthusiasm.

“But now you did just that. Will that not be a problem?” Hew observed.

“No,” Alice answered, “There are beastkin who have horns. They may not be very pleased to give the barony to a beastkin, but there is no law against it.”

"Didn't you just say they'd reject anyone without power? Because you mentioned you can't sense her power..." Mike wondered.

Julietta shook her head. “She's not without power; you just can't gauge it. It's better this way. Her power level wasn't that impressive and was at the limit of what would be considered noble, but this way, it's more threatening. Just having this skill is sufficient proof that she has sufficient magic power. This is a very powerful skill! What kind of skill is this?”

"It's an assassin skill," I explained.

"That's a pretty rare skill to work even against my best spell. What you propose is risky, but it might work," the elf girl explained with a pensive face.

"You trust yourself a lot!" Tom observed. "If you can't overcome this skill, do you think nobody in the royal palace would?"

Julietta answered with a smile. "Well, Tom, I've lived a long life, and I've honed my identification skill a lot, so there's a pretty low probability that somebody in that palace would have a stronger skill than mine."

I grinned happily at her explanation.

"It's Cala's skill and should be at the highest levels. She was impossible to gauge, and I hope it stays the same with me," I explained.

"As I said, it's still a bit of a gamble," she said hesitantly, "but it might work. Can you keep it on all the time without exception?"

"It's one of those skills that stays on or off once you set it, even when you sleep. Try to catch me with the skill off, and you get a wish free for any time you catch me."

"A wish free for anything I want?" she wondered.

"Anything within my power to do. Don't ask for the moon..." I tried to limit the risk, even though I thought she wouldn't be able to win anything. Cala was pretty confident in her skill, and I hoped it would work the same for me.

"Then it's settled," Michael said. "Tomorrow, we start heading South from here!"

The Lynx shook his head. "No, I think it would be simpler if I go first in search of a road," he said.

I nodded. "Sounds like a plan!" I said with a yawn, stretching my limbs. "Oh my, I'm tired. Can we go to sleep inside the ring now?" I wondered.

Alice gave me an uncertain look. "Well, not exactly. We're not sleeping inside anymore."

"Why's that?" I asked.

"Let me show you," she said, placing the ring on the ground. She touched the button and opened the portal. I entered, followed by Alice, and then the rest.

Once inside, I looked around. Everything looked the same as the last time I was there.

"Well, what's going on?" I wondered.

"Look at the walls!" Alice exclaimed.

Only now did I notice that the whole cavern was slowly wobbling, as if it were made of gelatin.

"Damn, this is really dangerous. The ring will collapse sometime soon!" I exclaimed.

Alice nodded in agreement. "Correct. This was also one of the reasons why we decided to spy on you."

"This was the reason you decided to spy on me? I don't understand," I said, raising a brow and looking at her.

Alice raised her shoulders in a shrug.

"We no longer had the time to wait. Normally, I would have waited to learn more about you, but with this problem with the ring, we needed to decide quickly if we could trust you in order to ask for your help with Sid. We needed to take action, which is why I asked Lynx to keep an eye on you and tell us what you were up to."

"Oh, so that's why you were at Mrs. Thorwal's house?" I asked.

"Exactly," Lynx replied. "I heard you planning the visit, and we decided to come and see for ourselves what was going on."

"When did you hear that?" I wondered, instantly regretting my question.

"That day before you slept in bed with that boy," Lynx answered bluntly.

My cheeks instantly turned beet red as I saw Tom coughing into his fist with an amused expression, but the Lynx continued with his innocent demeanor.

"The most interesting part was in the morning when that woman threw you out of their house. Why was that? Is there a fight in human society for who will be the dominant woman in the household? Can two women not live as equals in one house?"

"In principle, no," an amused Tom answered.

"Did Kate throw you out of her house?" Mike wondered.

"Really?" Hew asked in turn.

I sighed. "Lynx, can't you ask those questions in private?" I wondered with a sigh.

He watched me with big, round, fake innocent eyes.

"I'm just curious to understand human society," he mumbled, but there was already an obvious grin on his face.

“Maybe we should continue this conversation outside?” Alice suggested. “There's always the danger that this construct could collapse.”

I shot her a thankful glance. I was sure she had said that to give me some respite from those questions.

Once we were outside, Alice closed the portal and placed the ring back on her finger.

"That's very dangerous, Alice," I remarked. "The ring's spatial expansion could collapse at any moment, and the resulting implosion could crush your hand, or who knows what other craziness could happen when that thing loses containment!"

She nodded and replied with a sigh. "I hope I'll sense it before it really collapses. I need to keep it with me at all times as long as we keep moving. I can't risk losing the ring because of Sid."

"Who is Sid?" Tom wondered.

"The sleeping dragon inside," I explained.

"What have you tried so far?" I asked Alice.

"That was a dragon?" Hew exclaimed.

I nodded.

"We've tried everything we know," Alice answered. "Do you know of any way to wake him up?"

I tried to recall any information I had from White Flower.

"A telepathic nudge could help, but none of us is a telepath. Perhaps the voice and breath of a mother dragon?" I suggested.