I figured after speaking with the Collective, I needed to quickly communicate with my other potential enemies. This time when I met with the Flatlander Prophet, I sent word of my arrival first, and met with him before his advisors.

I chose to stand instead of sit because I wanted to keep this brief.

"You didn't call on us for help," the Prophet said. "I heard about your battle."

"I looked into your eyes and knew I couldn't trust you."

"I suppose this is a new beginning for us, with you taking the position of Prophet. You should know I'm not giving up our stolen villages and I won't stand idly by while you grow in power. I've looked into your eyes as well, and I know I can't trust you either."

I lifted my chin, looked to Piercey on my right, and Marcus on my left, before smirking at the Flatlander Prophet. "It's hard to trust what you fear."

He breathed in sharply through his nose, anger hardening his eyes.

"We shouldn't allow ourselves to hate each other too much. New enemies could come to Skia Hellig and we may need to fight together." I watched his reactions carefully. "What do you know about the man who travels with the cult?"

"What man?"

"He calls himself an observer."

The Prophet made an exasperated sound. "I don't meddle in their dealings. We had a partnership of convenience. I only know that like many in Skia Hellig, they want to see you gone."

"I have no interest in your land or in challenging you. I only care about my kingdom. You should consider who is truly worth your time fighting."

"Your kingdom? A fifth of your land is stolen. I will not rest until I have it back."

Those villages that Eskel supposedly stole from him never considered themselves a part of his kingdom in the first place. I had no intention of ever allowing him to occupy them. "If it's so important to you to waste the lives of your people," I said, "Then who am I to stop you? I am not so quick to send my warriors into pointless battle. But we will never hesitate to defend our valley. Attack us and you will die."

His jowls trembled with rage. "I think we're finished here."

"Stay the fuck away from my people." I reached my hands out on either side so my advisors could take them. And we vanished from the sight of our enemy.

----------------------------------------

I traveled a great deal the first few days after we killed Lote. One of my first stops after dealing with threats to the valley was to portal with Gael to his king to thank them for their allyship and discuss how to reciprocate their loyalty and kindness. Though the king shared that he wanted to help, he reminded me that partnerships like these weren't simply for charity, and investing in a budding kingdom helped us both. In a show of trust, I shared enough about the gods and the other world that they had to swear themselves to secrecy, but not so much that I felt in jeopardy of angering the gods.

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

Immediately, we returned to the valley to meet with leadership and plan our crucial next few weeks. No demons attacked in the initial days after the battle with Lote, but we couldn't become lax with our security. Our young kingdom faced threats from our neighbors, the cult, and now this alarmingly powerful man who called himself an observer. I didn't tell the leaders that I thought he worked for the gods, but I did assure them that we would investigate his identity and his abilities.

While throughout the valley, the people and their leaders worked on establishing our kingdom, Nash and I traveled to the old village of the former Prophet of the Valley, Eskel.

I stood directly beneath the hole in the ceiling of the temple where I'd buried the Prophet of the Valley beneath a pile of rubble.

"We can't choose this village," I said. "Wherever we settle will become the center of the kingdom and this temple should be demolished."

Nash lowered to one knee and touched the black stain. "This place holds too many memories."

He'd lived years here, forced to serve the Prophet to protect his daughter. "Do you really think we can do this?"

Nash looked up at me and gave me that easy smile. When he stood back up, he tilted my face up toward his. "Absolutely. We're already doing it. Now, we'll have the help we need."

"I'll miss the Sacred School. I never thought I'd be able to say that. When I ran away, I planned on never coming back. Now it feels like home."

"You'll feel that way about leading the valley one day. When the time comes to pass it on to the next ruler, you'll miss it."

I shrugged one shoulder. "I don't know. Remember when you told me you wanted to find a quiet place to live? At least a day's ride from the nearest village? When we're done here, we can make a home like that for ourselves."

"If we're ever done here, people will follow you, you know."

"I suppose I could let them visit."

"What about your village? Could we build there?"

The hope of returning my people and ruling from there hurt too much to think about. I wasn't sure how everyone would feel about the natural increase in power, at least in the perception of power, it would give to my village. "What if people complain?"

"We have to pick a village. Why not home?"

"Chief Kaid can teach me what the hell to do," I said with a laugh.

"Have you seen the library at the Sacred School? Piercey and Marcus are basically living in there with their team. You would think they'd been working on these plans for a decade already. The room is covered in maps and drafts of laws and plans for infrastructure. We're going to be fine."

I smoothed my hands up his chest and wrapped them around his neck. "How is it that we're undertaking the creation of a kingdom and somehow it feels like a vacation?"

"Because you scared our enemies away. This is what peace feels like."

"They'll be back."

"Not before we manage to sleep through the night."

I settled against him and sighed. "Are you sure Elsie will let that happen?"

He laughed and ran his hand along my back. "I guess there is no peace when you have a five year old at home."

"I miss her. Let's go. Let's never come back to this temple again."

"I like that plan."

My hold on him tightened as I stared at the blood stain beneath us. "What about that man? I don't know if I can sleep knowing he's out there somewhere."

"He never intervened until someone invaded our world and he said he hoped not to encounter us again."

"I don't trust the gods. I need to know who he is and if they sent him. They could get angry and have him go on a killing spree."

"Our world is filled with dangers, Max. Some are out of our control and some are problems for another day. Chances seem good that he isn't coming to hurt anyone we love this week. So let's rest and we'll try to figure out who is another day."

"Okay." The feel of him against me soothed the wild fear in my heart.