Five days had passed since Elaya had unexpectedly vanished. It was at a level where even her tame had disappeared. If she hadn’t reassured me when she disappeared, I’d have been afraid that she had perished. As it was, I was deeply worried about her loss. I had sent some of my people to Deeksville to help them develop, but for the last few days, I had mostly moped around in my room. The girls all stopped by to try to cheer me up, but I still had complicated feelings deep down.

After working so hard to save Salicia, I had turned around and lost Elaya. She wasn’t just another woman, but someone essential to me. She was filled with a lot of knowledge about the world, and also had a strong connection to the royal family. Losing her felt a bit like losing my hand.

“Master, how about we head to the Ost Republic? The wedding is coming up in just a few weeks.” Miki offered

“I want to see Master dressed up for a wedding,” Celeste added.

“It’d help get Master’s mind off of things.” Shao continued.

Perhaps they were right. Given that this wasn’t a normal world, it might take several weeks to be able to get to another country. Even with Blue Mages and Portals, they often only made one Portal a day. You might have to wait a week in a certain village before the Portal opened for the next jump. If you had 2-3 jumps to get from west Aberis to the middle of a foreign country, it could easily take two weeks to arrive. Even then, many arrived earlier to discuss foreign matters and to form alliances.

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While I was staying in Chalm, I was missing out on doing some of the most essential things an upcoming noble should be doing, forming alliances and connections with those around me. I had always been told if you wanted to get ahead in any job, forming connections was important. Unfortunately, I didn’t have any skill with that.

Just as I was about to agree with them, there was a sudden knock on my door. Faeyna poked her head in without waiting for an answer. She used to be more considerate, but lately, she had been acting bolder. She took particular joy in interrupting my personal time with other women. I think the other girls’ attitudes were rubbing off on her in a bad way.

She looked around the room, her eyes narrowing as she saw Miki, Celeste, and Shao in bed with me. Lydia was out doing some chores, and Terra was reinforcing the wall and tinkering in her shop.

“Master, a messenger is waiting at the front of the mansion.”

“Hmm? The front?”

“He won’t enter. He says his message is for all of Chalm.”

I frowned, but it didn’t stop me from putting on my clothing and leaving. The other girls dressed just as quickly and soon we were walking out onto the front yard of the mansion. A nondescript man was waiting there at the gate. As I approached him, he broke into a smile. Suddenly, he lifted a small crystal and then squeezed it.

“Watch out!” Shao put up a barrier as a surge of magic exploded from the man.

However, it wasn’t an attack. Instead, a massive form appeared right in front of my mansion, adjacent to the town square. The hulking mass was about fifty feet tall, and I recognized it. It was Lord Reign!