Time passed quickly for Reivan after he returned from his short reunion with Elsamina and his first exposure to the republic's tragic state.

The darkin ladies were handled exclusively by his sister, Jiji. She was both a woman and a non-human, so she was one of the royal family members that the darkin could relate to the most. His Uncle Viktor had a very high reputation among the winged ladies too, and by virtue of looking very similar, she got a boost in her affability. Jiji was also very good at socializing when she tried, making her perfect for the job.

As for the wedding preparations, Reivan wished he could continue letting the women in his family handle that since their aesthetic tastes regarding this kind of thing obviously trumped his own. But sadly, being the groom meant that he couldn't too many steps back. It was fortunate that he remembered the advice of his forebears to simply nod along and say that everything was perfect.

Except for the cake. The advice really was valuable because he almost got stuck with boring old chocolate.

'Not that I'm hating on chocolate, but...'

He had it so often though. Obviously, he wanted something fresh and different to commemorate one of the most significant days of both his lives. Everyone involved seemed to understand him, so the most famous cake makers were called and asked for a contribution.

Surprisingly, it was the elderly patissier who made the initial cake who stepped up and presented the best alternative. Reivan couldn't quite compare it with anything in his previous world since the flavoring used fruits unique to the Pentagoria Continent, mixed with vanilla cream and crushed cookies.

It tasted absolutely fantastic. Helen liked it too, thereby sealing the deal. The only complaint they had was that they wouldn't be able to taste it for the first time during the wedding reception. But that was fine, since at least they wouldn't be stuck with a boring cake.

Now, everything was perfect and Reivan could proudly say that he contributed something to the preparations.

Of course, he wasn't just idling around and trying his best to help. He was doing his own set of preparations for the coming years by spending some time in the Sword Sanctum.

"Did I do it right, Mother?" Reivan strained his neck to glance at the woman squatting behind him on the grass with a palm on his back. "I did, didn't I? I really am a genius."

Vianna snorted, but still smiled. "You certainly learn quickly, but shouldn't you lower your arrogance?"

"If it's true, then it's not arrogance. But confidence."

"Yes, yes. My son's all grown up and he's always right."

Reivan chuckled as the hand on his back came up to pinch his cheeks instead. "Not always, but I am all grown up. I'm even getting married in a few days~!"

"And now he's boasting about it..." Vianna shook her head in exasperation as she let go of him and leaned against the pink cherry blossom tree behind her. "With this, you've learned all you can for now. Anything else will either have to wait until you Ascend, or if you come up with some other versions on your own."

"I think they're good enough on their own, but I'll try to improve them along with what I learned from Uncle if I can. Doubt I could, though. They're techniques that you two came up with, after all."

"Don't count yourself out that quickly. Different people have different insights on things." Vianna chided him with a soft thump on the back of his head. "Take what you can and make it your own. That's the best way."

Reivan touched the spot she hit and smiled. "I'll do my best. Thanks for worrying about me."

It was only for a short time, but his mother and uncle taught him some techniques along with possible ways to utilize his bloodline. He wasn't a warbeast, so none of them knew if the information was relevant to him. But the techniques didn't need to draw upon any bloodlines so they were definitely useful.

He knew for a fact that they were just concerned for his safety and wanted him to have as many combat options as possible.

"Son..." Vianna suddenly hugged him from behind, her familiar motherly warmth enveloping him. "If it's too hard, you should just come back here, alright? Your life is still the most important."

Reivan leaned into her embrace with closed eyes, enjoying the sensation he had grown so used to in this life but never experienced in his past. "I know. But don't worry too much. I'm pretty strong too, but I'm still going to be protected by a lot of knights. And there won't be any Ascendants participating... if the treaty is to be trusted."

"Only a fool would trust it completely. Do not be a fool."

"I'm won't, I won't. The treaty isn't absolutely binding the same way a knight's vows are. I will be careful and always assume the worst."

"Very good." Vianna stroked his head, just like she always did when he was young. "But I'm serious, you know? You can say no whenever you want. I'll take your side even if your father and brother say otherwise."

Reivan's brows furrowed and he opened his eyes. "Don't say such things."

"I mean it."

"There's no need." Reivan released himself from her and pushed up against the green grass to stand up. He then stared down at her. "One cannot spend their life doing only what they want. I will do what I must because I am a prince who shares responsibility for this nation. Because I am a part of this family. Because I share responsibility for the happiness of its members. And because I want to."

Their golden eyes met across the air before she pouted a little too cutely for someone with a son. "But I've heard you complaining about how many concubines you have..."

"Urgh... Well..." Reivan scratched his cheek sheepishly as he looked away. "I'll admit that my personality's not the best, so I frequently complain about things out loud..."

"If it's like that, then shouldn't you just say no, then?"

"You don't understand, Mother. Didn't I say I'm doing this to make my family happy? If having a bunch of concubines and fathering a ton of children will do that, then that is what I will do. We all have our parts to do, and I know that this is mine. By raising me with love and care, you have fulfilled yours."

"That's—"

"Besides," Reivan cut her off with a smirk. "I like taking care of children. Seeing a bunch of them running around and playing won't be such a bad thing."

Of course, he only meant children in his family. He didn't think he liked children in general.

Kyouka when she was little, Helen when she was younger, and now there were Roland's kids. Reivan realized that seeing kids being kids scratched an itch in his heart that he wasn't fully aware of. Seeing them happy made him happy too. Almost as if he was living vicariously through them.

He didn't have some grand goal to change the world or save it from evil. There was nothing wrong with just doing everything he could for the people who gave him so much joy in this life, right?

Reivan thought that he owed his mother a lot, though it wasn't like he was doing everything just to pay her back. Her goals were his goals now. And as her son, he would shoulder her expectations.

Because he could. Because no one else could. Because he must.

And because he wanted to.

"Oh, you..." Vianna bit her lip and stood up to hug him again. "You really know what to say, you cheeky brat..."

Reivan chuckled as he hugged her back. This. This warmth was something he would go to war for, he felt. A life of not growing up with it made him appreciate it even more.

"I suppose you're ready for marriage if you can appease a woman like this." Vianna let go of him and squished his cheeks together. "Then I shouldn't hold back with my expectations, hm?"

"Eh? Well, uh... Maybe hold back a little bit, okay?"

"Where's all the bluster and confidence from earlier?"

"You'll have to ask my secretary, since I seem to have misplaced them."

The two of them laughed and chatted for a bit longer before parting ways, though Reivan chose to stay in the Sanctum to digest what he'd learned. There was just something about the place that fostered focus, inducing a trance-like state that made it easier to perceive the supernatural forces of the world.

Hell, maybe it was placebo and he was talking out of his ass. Who knew?

In any case, one of the most useful techniques he learned was one that spread cold air throughout a very wide area.

Though he could accomplish something similar with a brute force display and with the help of numerous other frost elementalists, with this technique, he could do it by himself. Of course, he would need some prior preparation, so it wasn't very practical for battle. But he wasn't planning to use it for battle in the first place.

'Lageton, I swear I'll be ready for you.'

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On one seemingly ordinary morning, Reivan and Helen's routine of sparring with each other was broken by an unexpected visitor.

It was Lady Iselle, the young leader of the darkin.

Reivan signed for Helen to stop just before she struck his head with a mace—a weapon she didn't use much, but she wanted to refresh her blunt weapon proficiencies today—and turned to the visitors. "Jiji. Lady Iselle. A pleasant morning to you... But what brings you here of all places?"

Jiji subtly pointed at Iselle with just her eyes as she explained. "Izzy here has something to talk to you about. Isn't that right?"

Lady Iselle nodded demurely. "I had to trouble Jiji, but I hope I'm not being a nuisance to His Highness."

'Izzy...?'

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

Clearly, they'd gotten closer seeing as they were already using nicknames. Jiji's name was so short that a nickname would be ironically harder to say, so being allowed to refer to her using only her first name, without a title, was a privilege few had in this world. Some people, like her adoptive brother, liked to refer to her as "brat" sometimes though.

"Not at all." Reivan shook his head with a smile, turning to Helen for confirmation.

Noticing what he wanted of her, Helen nodded with a small smile of her own—which was about the best her stony face could manage on such short notice. "You're not being a nuisance, Lady Iselle. Please, feel free to speak."

Satisfied with her follow-up, Reivan sized up the visitor.

Gone were the darkin's previous garbs. Iselle now wore a clean white tunic that contrasted her crimson irises and her jet-black hair was braided into an elegant bun behind her head. It seemed some modifications had been made to her top, for her wings jutted out of it and were comfortably folded behind her. As for her legs, they were wrapped in those knightly breeches that Reivan appreciated very much.

All in all, she looked a lot cleaner and more put together than the first time they'd met. Like a princess trying to blend into the crowd, but very badly doing so because of just how majestic they were.

'Hm? Given her status, shouldn't they have given her a few dresses? And the darkin seemed to really like dresses too...'

Her current attire made him think she was here to spar with them or something. However, that seemed a bit absurd given how she was an Ascendant while everyone in the courtyard was a mortal.

"Eh? Wait a minute..." Reivan suddenly noticed the absence of a familiar pressure whenever he met an Ascendant.

To confirm his suspicions, he checked her with [Supreme Insight] and had to rub his eyes to see if he was seeing correctly. Everything was mostly the same. Only two pieces of information had changed.

"You're not an Ascendant anymore...?" he muttered in a daze.

Helen raised a brow beside him and whispered. "Was she one in the first place?"

"Yes, she was. I checked her first when they all arrived."

"Maybe you mixed her up with someone else?"

"There's no way I did..." Reivan frowned as he scratched his head. "Or did I?"

'Holy shit, was I actually wrong? Or am I gaslighting myself into thinking I'm wrong right now?'

His memory wasn't that bad. In fact, it was rather good since with his rising physical capabilities, his brain's capabilities rose with it. As such, he was rather confident in this matter. But the present situation was making him second-guess himself.

Eventually, Jiji held her hand out with a giggle. "Don't worry, Yani. You're not wrong and you're not going senile either."

Reivan and Helen tilted their heads in sync.

It was Lady Iselle who spoke up with a sheepish smile. "If you'll allow me to explain..."

Apparently, members of the darkin's matriarch bloodline had a special technique that allowed them to take a bit of power from every clan member nearby, gathering that within themselves and temporarily rising in power. If the power obtained tipped over enough, then they'd temporarily rise in realm. The other two Ascendants were true Ascendants, but Iselle had temporarily boosted her strength when their group got cut off and came under attack.

'That... That sounds extremely overpowered! Oh my god!'

Didn't that mean that with sufficient numbers, they could boost someone up beyond Transcendence? If there were seven billion darkin, could they temporarily give birth to an Archon? Or maybe just an Empyrean, but even that was crazy.

Iselle followed up by saying that the technique did have a fatal drawback that made it something to be used only in extreme emergencies. Basically, the strength taken would return after a few days, but it wouldn't return completely. A quarter of the strength would vanish, and the darkin who lent part of their power would be permanently weaker.

And they couldn't just train to make it rise again. Because what disappeared was potential. They couldn't train back what they'd lost, because they lower the limits of their body every time they participate.

Apparently, this loss of potential followed them even after they Ascended.

'Oh. That explains why their Ascendants are weaker compared to ours.'

That also meant that their people were forced to use this costly technique very frequently. It would take a lot of uses to explain the relative weakness of their Ascendents when compared to human ones.

"Your people really had it rough," Helen remarked with sympathetic eyes. "You still seem quite strong yourself, despite that."

Iselle shyly nodded. "Though I feel embarrassed about it, I was called somewhat of a prodigy among my people. So I've been able to come close to the next step despite my youth. I was actually preparing to make an attempt when we got split off."

"You should stand proud." Reivan smiled reassuringly. "Not everyone can become a Half-Ascendant at such a young age."

"Yes..."

It seemed she got a bit shy from praise, so Reivan didn't trouble her and changed the subject despite the instinct to continue teasing. "Ah, you wanted to talk to me about something, right? We got sidetracked because I noticed the change in you... or rather, the reversal of changes."

"Ah. Yes, that's right." Lady Iselle then bowed deeply. "It's just that Jiji has told me that you were very adamant about helping our people, even going so far as to speak out for us. You were the loudest voice in the royal family regarding our good treatment. I came here to offer you our sincere gratitude."

"Oh, there's no need to keep mentioning that..." Reivan chuckled and sheepishly scratched his head. He wasn't doing this out of some goodwill, but to fulfill the favor that Zell asked him of. Given everything that the world-devouring serpent did for him, he obviously felt quite indebted to her and would aim to help the darkin out as long as it didn't negatively impact the nation too much.

Endangering knights in search of them had been too much by his books. But the crown and the knights were all curious about the signs of civilization they'd been finding for the longest time, so expeditions would have happened regardless of his influence. The portal and the Outlands weren't going anywhere, so Aizen wanted to understand it as much as possible—and through understanding, they would know how to better handle the accursed place.

"Izzy, take it out." Jiji nudged the winged woman with a grin.

"Ah, yes. I almost forgot..." Iselle gingerly retrieved something from her spatial ring and presented it to him. "It is not much, and I don't even know if you will like it, but we have prepared a gift for you."

'Oh? What's this...?'

Reivan carefully received the cloak seemingly fashioned from numerous black feathers and immediately realized where said feathers came from. "Oh, wow. This is so cool..."

"I told you he'd like it," Jiji whispered unquietly to Iselle before turning to him. "All the darkin pitched in to hand over feathers you know?"

"Really? There are so many though... I hope nobody's walking around with no feathers. That'd be horrible."

"Uhm, there's no need to worry about that..." Iselle offered with a bit of panic. "Our feathers don't come off easily, but when they do, they'll grow back quickly enough. And each of us only had to contribute ten or so feathers."

Reivan hummed in understanding as he ran a hand across the cloak. It looked surprisingly durable and rather than being held together by something, it was almost as if the feathers were magnetically attached to each other. With a quick examination, [Supreme Insight] told him that the cloak didn't have any particular effects. But oddly enough, that made the gift more sincere in his eyes.

The darkin had practically nothing to their name. Yet they still racked their brain to come up with something to gift him. It meant a lot more than a sack of precious jewels from a rich man, so to speak. They had quite literally scraped the bottom of the barrel just to show him their appreciation.

"Can I really have this?" Reivan raised a brow, turning to Iselle with a smile.

"It would be an honor if you would take it." She bowed again. "And it is also to congratulate you on your... uhm, wedding? I believe it was called. The human mating ritual. We have made one for Lady Helen as well."

"Eh? Me too?" Helen tilted her head and pointed at herself. But she also received a cloak of feathers and smiled. "It's nice. Thank you."

"We truly appreciate the darkin's gifts, Lady Iselle." Reivan tried not to laugh at what the darkin called marriage, lest he make her feel made fun of. "I would have loved it if you could attend."

"That would also be an honor, but unfortunately, we are afraid we'd embarrass ourselves in front of your guests... And as it is a special day for His Highness, we would not want to steal away the attention."

'Ah. Didn't think of it that way... They're really considerate, aren't they?'

It was a quality that made them very easy to get along with and simultaneously made everyone around them amiable.

Reivan suddenly realized that his sister may have said something to incite such an opinion, so he unconsciously looked at her with suspicion.

And it seemed she could tell what he was thinking, because her brows furrowed as she explained. "I tried to convince them it'd be fine, okay? I didn't bully them in any way."

"I didn't say anything though? Why are you so defensive?"

"Your eyes said it all."

Reivan snorted at her before smiling at Iselle once again. "I'm sure you and your people will adjust to life here in time. Then we can reveal your existence to the rest of the nation. And I'm sure our people will welcome you with open arms."

Iselle delicately nodded. "Yes..."

"Oh, and of course, I will do my utmost to accelerate the attempt to send a search party for the rest of your kind."

His words seemed to go over very well because she brightened up and practically beamed in joy at him. "Yes. Thank you, Your Highness. All of us truly appreciate your kindness."

"Uh-huh. Well, that's all well and good, but I hope you understand that it may take a while... Months, at least. Perhaps even a year of preparation is required for another trip. The Outlands is a very dangerous place that devours the unprepared, as I'm confident you've experienced plenty of times."

"We understand. Please do not worry and take your time." She bowed with a solemn expression and glanced at Jiji for a moment before her smile returned. "Jiji has helped us calm down and think things through more clearly."

"Really, now? How so?"

"We will no longer insist on returning to our world by ourselves."

"That's... That's excellent news." Reivan nodded to himself. The darkin recklessly going off on their own and getting themselves killed was one of the worst-case scenarios in Reivan's mind. But it seemed as if they had finally seen the light. "What brought this on, if I may ask?"

It was Jiji who answered. "I simply pointed out that while their clan had a chance of surviving in the Outlands, the group we rescued did not. They would simply be getting themselves killed for no reason, given their overall strength."

Iselle nodded. "That alone wasn't enough to convince us, but she also said that rather than getting ourselves killed, it is better to pave the way for the rest of our kind. We will live in this world and be accepted, making it easier for the others to be accepted when they finally arrive. We will set the foundation for the place where our kind will belong."

"That's a fantastic mindset." Reivan smiled proudly as he looked toward his sister. She had done really well this time. He supposed that mouth of hers had a use after all, other than spouting insolent crap at him in private. "Of course, I will also help as much as I can in this wonderful endeavor."

It was a lot better than a suicidal expedition with little support from the kingdom and its knights.

"Thank you very much." Iselle happily bowed, the hair bun on the back of her head unsteadily shaking from the exertion. Then she looked up with a bit of hesitation. "To be honest, I have a request regarding that..."

"A request...?" Reivan momentarily glanced at Jiji and noted how the cat-eared princess wasn't surprised in the slightest. "Let's hear it then."

If Jiji wasn't surprised, that meant she knew. And that likely meant that Iselle had either consulted her or the request was conceived during a prior conversation of theirs. Finally, if Jiji didn't inform him in advance, that meant it wasn't too troublesome.

'Or it's so troublesome that she knows, without a shadow of a doubt, that I'd refuse.'

Reivan thought that he'd built a reputation as being a tolerant prince, so people generally understood that they would have to go really far to get on his nerves. This wasn't just for those he was close to either, but to those beneath him as well.

After all, in his past life, a literal butler had filled the role of a father figure for him. And he received so much care from other servants too. Naturally, he grew to be more respectful of the people taking care of his daily needs, even if they were being fairly compensated to do so.

Hopefully, he could instill such qualities in his future children as well. Without the trauma he himself had to suffer, of course.

'Anyway, I wonder what she's going to ask for?'

If it was just some money to fund the construction of a home suitable to their tastes, then he would be more than happy to give it to them. He had more than enough money at this point. And when he took up his post in Lageton, he would have little need of it due to the full support of Aizen's coffers behind him.

As long as it didn't involve sacrificing his firstborn child or anything, he would probably grant them their request.

Still, he had learned his lessons from past conversations and knew better than to accept before hearing it all out.

"Before that..." Iselle momentarily glanced at Helen before her crimson eyes returned to answer his gaze. "I would like to participate in your morning spar."

"Huh?" Reivan raised a brow. "What for?"

"I believe that my request will be received better if you are aware of my strength."

"Uh, there's no need for violence and whatnot..."

With his special ability, he could see that her Might was actually similar to his. Of course, he could increase it even more because of his numerous steroid abilities. But he could already tell that she wasn't some pushover.

That said, strength couldn't be entirely summed up with just a number.

Seeing his reluctance must have made her panic, because she bowed once again. "Please. Let me prove my capabilities."

As Reivan hesitated from the increased sincerity, Helen nudged him with her elbow. "Why don't you just do it?"

"Why are you suddenly taking her side...?" he asked her with a hint of shock. "Coming from you, I would've thought that you'd want to spar her in my place."

"She seems to really want to, so why not? We haven't been able to fight each other properly, so you may as well use her as a whetstone instead. Also, she'll be a fresh experience because you two have never fought before and have no idea of how the other fights. Maybe you'll get new combat insights from the battle."

"That... Okay, you have a point."

Reivan scratched his chin, once again realizing that he had become a bit of a battle junky since embracing the knightly lifestyle.