Shen left the mobile fortress and found a small floating platform made of earth, like the step of a staircase, littered with tiny flowers.

His orders said he would see the way to the Acting General once he left the fortress, and the platform was obviously it. He stepped on it, and the flowers instantly grew and multiplied, forming the next step, a mix of petals and closed buds that didn't break under his weight when he stepped on them. The closed buds blossomed and released thousands of bees that formed the next step, then instantly built a thick honeycomb for the next one. A bear paw coming from a shrub materialized from above, drilling the comb for its bountiful honey. Vines came from the shrub to produce the next step, became thorny for the next one, then an army of ants bit on it and took the tiny parts to the anthill in the following step. More ants came from above, bringing leaves from a pile that was mixed with dried ones. More dried leaves and a hint of snow formed the next step, then only snow. As Shen kept climbing, snow eventually turned into dried earth, sand, water, fishes, birds, reptiles, stones, lava, and all manners of representations of nature.

He looked up but saw nothing but the currently rainbow-colored skies of La'sing-0. When the Calamity started, he had asked to be deployed in the La'sing-2, a Subnode of the La'sing Node. The vast majority of his missions took place in La'sing-2, but resting time was in La'sing-0, in the Node itself, where he had first arrived.

The stairway to heaven continued for minutes in a wide spiral design. On his every step, whatever was a few paces below him turned to dust.

At last, he reached the end.

The last step was once again simple earth, a return to origin. It marked the staircase a perfect cycle of nature, even though countless seasons had been represented. From it came green vines and flowers that produced a massive double door. They opened, revealing he had arrived below the gigantic treetop of an otherwise average-looking, lonely tree on a green hill.

It had been a very long time since Shen saw something as lovely as what he did there. His eyes found the Queen of Spring and Autumn, looking both young and adult, real and ethereal, sitting on a swing made of brown rope. She was wearing a comely white robe that fluttered as the swing moved and smiling in a way that made him hesitate to approach. He didn't belong there, and all three parties knew it.

Yes, three, for Captain Abbav was also present.

The draggor was sitting on the ground with his back on the tree, an arm resting on a raised knee, looking at the Acting General with such rapture that it was obvious even in his draconic face, which was considerably less expressive than humans. He wore a simple black robe that contrasted with his white scales. He had also grown a tail, even though, from Shen's research, draggors didn't usually have one.

Shen took a deep breath and stepped inside.

It was like coming to another world. The green hill stood alone among an endless ocean of flowers. Birds and bees seemed to almost dance above it, and the green skies he barely saw through the treetop had just the right amount of clouds to look cozy. The sunbeams piercing the canopy gave everything a final special touch.

The Queen looked at him when he "entered" the hill. The sheer happiness in her eyes was replaced by mere contentment, and her smile diminished. Shen felt bad for killing the mood, but those were his orders.

He also detected the signs of Realization Conformation. The Queen's Realization would make him feel deep sadness, or the coldness of winter, or whatever other effect the Queen's Realization would have on him. Fortunately, he knew how to prevent that.

The six months of elite combat training had been enlightening. Among many things, he had learned that not all Realizations passively affected other people, but when they did, A-ranks had no control over it. Reality intrinsically conformed to the Realization of their Paths, and people were part of Reality. It was similar to an aura's effects on other people, even when it wasn't attacking them. The closer Shen got to the source of the Realization, the stronger the effect became. The passive range was limited to a few hundred yards, which was likely why the Queen kept so high above everyone in La'sing-0, though she could willingly increase the range if she wanted. It would be considered an attack, though.

Below A-rank, the technique he had learned to protect himself required an aura and a domain. Only someone with an aura could touch and affect their connection to Reality the way the technique required. And while he didn't need to use his domain, only someone who knew how to push their emotions into their Path, then their Path into the world, could manipulate their feelings with the finesse the technique demanded.

Reality pushed its Conformation to the Queen's Realization into Shen through the very link it used to create his aura. He could just block the connection, but then he would lose his aura. Even when he kept it to himself, it gave him some advantages he would rather not lose. So, instead, he moved his genuine emotions and Path there and used them as a filter. Anything that didn't match those feelings and Laws was discarded. Of course, there was a lot of qi moving in unique patterns to make that work, but the technique would be useless without the proper foundations to build upon.

Shen hadn't been surprised when he realized the Dissimulative Protection Technique was almost the natural evolution of the emotional control he had learned from the drow. They had stolen those methods from the military, too, though they had watered it down until it wasn't considered them having shared secrets they shouldn't.

Shen still recalled Abbav saying the drow had crossed the line but didn't think it was true. Instead, some drow somewhere had probably gotten themselves a lot of clearances, more than Abbav, and had a better understanding of what lines they could and couldn't cross. Abbav himself had previously said that the line was fluid. Likely, the elite training Shen had received involved things that Abbav was ignorant of, and it would take someone with more clearances to determine the spirit of the law was respected.

The Queen's swing was getting slower. Her smile progressively lost its shine until it ended up barely touching her lips.

The emotion she displayed didn't matter; she was always breathtaking.

In fact, she looked even more perfect now than the last time Shen had seen her. Her skin had a natural luster that it had previously lacked. The implication was obvious.

Shen looked at Abbav, who was standing up.

A-ranks didn't obey the same cultural rules as everyone below regarding romance between ranks or substantial age gaps. A-ranks, Shen had recently learned, lived forever. They were also too scarce. If the rules didn't bend for them, they would have a very limited pool of potential partners to choose from. So, any B-rank was fair game.

He had also learned in elite combat training that anyone with a Realization didn't need to worry about Path Poisoning when getting intimate with someone. It was a huge secret he had been let in on so he wouldn't wrongly assume no B-rank would act irrationally out of love to help an A-rank. Although he was still C-rank, his training had included knowledge he wouldn't use for eons yet.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

Anyway, Shen pitied Abbav.

The Queen had always felt beyond Shen, and it was by design. Her very Realization instinctively told people whether they should admire her from afar or think of her in any other way. She had always made Shen look at her like a distant goddess, not a woman.

Now that her Realization couldn't force him to Conform, he could see her as a woman. As the epitome of beauty. Without his willpower and very active control, his body would be desiring her like he had never desired anyone. Yet, he would never touch or look improperly at a taken woman. Moreover, everything he was demanded romantic exclusivity, while the high-elven woman was known for her harem. After his True Self, he was even more firm in his belief in picking a partner for life, not just having fun. Thus, he pitied Abbav for becoming just another of her conquests.

Not that Abbav himself seemed to care. Shen had never seen any person that happy in his entire life.

"Pity, Lieutenant?" the Queen's marvelous voice caressed Shen's ears.

It didn't surprise him that she could detect his feelings despite him doing his best to hide them. He looked at her. She was sitting on the already still swing, though not enough time had passed for it to stop. Obviously, Time and Space worked with some particularities in her Nascent Reality.

"You would dare pity someone for taking me?" Her voice was angry, and a bleak winter demanded passage into Shen's feelings. His Dissimulative Protection prevented that. Instead, he saw the tease in her eyes.

"Never, Acting General," he replied sincerely. "I pity others for having to share."

The answer gained him a curious stare. "So you would marry a woman who has already experienced others if she gave herself to you, and only you, for the rest of her life? The investigation on your background suggested otherwise."

Everyone was investigated when they came to the military. The more clearances someone got, the deeper the military dug. Shen didn't mind it. After all, a single mistake of his and the entire Node ceased to exist.

"It depends on the woman, Acting General. There's more to picking a partner for life than looks."

"Even if I proposed it?" she asked.

Her voice was playful, but Shen could tell she was interested in the answer. The Queen didn't care for compliments because she had heard too many. But she was prideful and known to resent anyone who disregarded her beauty. She hated being lied to even more, so Shen had to find a middle ground.

"I can't imagine a world where you would propose something like that, Acting General. My C-rank mind is too limited for it."

She tsked. "I said no politics in La'sing, Lieutenant. Your roundabout reminder that you're too young for me was noted. I resent it. Answer me honestly, and I promise not to resent you for the truth."

Shen didn't believe her but had no choice but to take her words at face value. He could refuse to answer a personal question, but that would be worse, no matter her talk about no politics.

"Acting General, you're my superior in every way I can imagine. I would refuse to touch you unless I overwhelm you in combat and assert my dominance over you in society and politics. Otherwise, I could never trust myself not to be played like a fiddle."

"So, you fear me too much," the Queen summarized. "I suppose that's fair. Not every man can be as brave as Captain Abbav."

The draggor had gotten upset at the woman's question and shot Shen a glare, but that was all. He had been walking towards her and stopped beside her, two feet behind. She was still Acting General, and he a mere Captain, and they were in an official meeting. Shen had been summoned through military channels, after all.

"I have called you here to discuss eleven things, Lieutenant Shen. The first is to give you context. Draggors are rare and secretive, their even rarer groups almost impossible to infiltrate. They do so out of necessity, for survival, for all dragons hunt them. That causes some of them to also be ignorant of their own characteristics until they figure it out themselves. Therefore, Captain Abbav and I were ignorant that draggors who are healed of their infertility are physically incapable of leaving their matelings' side when the latter is pregnant. Forcing him would kill him unless I burned my blood essence to fuel my Realization to change his very nature, which I can't at the moment. I am thus making the best of a poor decision, which means using him as a secretary for some matters. Officially so. I have not broken any rules when I discussed some of your personal matters with him."

The news surprised Shen more than anything until now. The Queen was pregnant? And Abbav was the father?!

As Alicia would say: What the actual fuck?!

"The second thing I want to inform you is that Captain Abbav is the primary reason I'm being this upfront. I have my own ways of doing things, which have proven their worth over the years. Captain Abbav has, however, insisted that he researched you after the Expeditionary Training. He contacted the former Drow Maiden, and she said the best way to deal with you is through honesty. You might still hate being forced, but you won't resent being used, which you rank as a much worse offense."

Liya had told Shen she had been contacted, and he had allowed her to reveal that. There was nothing wrong with people knowing he really hated being lied to or manipulated.

Of course, no one enjoyed it, but some accepted it as part of living in the hierarchical structure of the Alliance and didn't seek retribution when they could. Shen couldn't accept it like that, and it was meaningful when a B-rank said that doing it to him would be very dumb. It also weighed more when that B-rank added the story of how he killed the father of the Human Maiden when the man tried to manipulate Shen—though poorly. Or how that B-rank felt he would be set on killing her, too, if she hadn't apologized from the bottom of her heart, despite how good her training had been to him.

"Therefore, the third thing I want to inform you is that I never meant to exploit the bond we shared due to your Baptism of Self. That would be akin to direct mind control and, thus, illegal. I also personally dislike mindless puppets. Control only has meaning if the other party has some degree of freedom. The seasons control nature, but nature has agency and can always surprise the seasons. That is the proper way of things."

Shen saw no reason for her to lie but also didn't fully trust her. He would wait and see what she wanted.

"The fourth thing is that I planned on using the bond for my amusement when I came to La'sing. I would play with your emotions just because I wanted to decompress. It wouldn't be more than making you smell my scent or hear my voice when I'm not around. No more than creating awkward situations between you and Luthdel. It would be allowed within military law because it would be a willpower-strengthening exercise. You would benefit from it. However, it seems you would also greatly resent it."

'Resent it' didn't even get close to how he would feel, and he allowed enough of his emotions to show to make a point.

Her light smile turned regretful. "You'll probably not believe me, but I swear I would never expect anyone to hate it that much. Not with the results you would get. Not with the peeks at absolute beauty you would remember and treasure for life." She chuckled, and it was the most captivating sound in the universe. "People call me prideful, and they are correct. I know I'm the most beautiful living being in the Alliance, maybe in all of Reality, and I see nothing wrong with feeling proud of it. Therefore, I believed that just being played by me would fill anyone with gratitude. It has happened so many times before that I stopped confirming it after a time. Thanks to Captain Abbav's warnings, I considered you might differ. Thanks to your answer, I confirmed he was absolutely correct. For some select few weird individuals, the glory of my beauty, power, position, and history isn't enough. Perhaps because they fear me. Perhaps because they are arrogant little pricks who think I should love them more than I love myself and fully surrender myself to them. It's a mystery."

That was somewhat interesting, but Shen failed to see how that was relevant.

"And so we come to the fifth matter. Captain Abbav's revelation, my initial goodwill, and my wrong belief all come together to determine that I owe you an apology. Not for intending to do something I didn't. I must apologize for actually manipulating you. I could've taught you a technique to stop your Raw Will from overwhelming your Path. I didn't. It wasn't personal; I don't do that until one Standard year has passed. It is a unique chance to hone one's willpower in a way no other technique I know can accomplish. It's similar to what the former Drow Maiden hinted about how she trained you, which you disliked. Therefore, Lieutenant Shen, I am sorry."

There were many things Shen expected to hear when he heeded the Queen's summon.

None of them included an apology.