Lakshman stared blankly at what he was seeing before asking, “W-What… is this place?”

The place that Emilia had taken them to was the entrance to a large alleyway filled with shops. People were busily going and coming through this alleyway with goods of different kinds. There were birds in cages, a set of armour, bags filled with what sounded like bottles from the jumbling sound they made and more.

“Welcome to Phoenix Alley,” announced Emilia cheerfully to her husband.

This made Lakshman blink with surprise and ask, “What? Phoenix Alley? I’ve never heard of it before till now. In fact, I didn’t think this place existed in our capital till now.” “It’s because it had been approved and opened only two-years-ago,” began Emilia with her explanation, “and by then you were already training for the war so it’s understandable that you didn’t know about this.”

“Come on! Let’s go in and check it out!” Tetra said, as she and Emilia began pulling him forward with the others tagging behind.

They entered through the archway and into what looked like a road filled with nothing but shops. There were clothes shops, accessories shops, item shops, decoration shops, armour shops, potion shops, pet shops, and many more. It seemed as though all available kind of shops were erected in this alleyway.

“This is amazing,” he commented, looking impressed before questioning, “but why is this place called Phoenix Alley?”

“It’s because the people that work here, either employed or managing the shops or owners of the shops, are those that were once slaves,” explained Emilia much to his surprise.

“Wait! Does that mean…?” He asked as he suddenly suspected something.

She nodded and said, “Yes. They were the slaves that you freed with great difficulty.”

While he was looking in awe, Ondine went on saying, “Apparently, they were very grateful for what the Phoenix Titan had done and so in your honour, they set up businesses and named it Phoenix Alley in association with you.”

“I… see…” he said slowly, taking in all that was done in this place. “I’m guessing they used all the money I had given them into developing their businesses.”

“Yes,” replied Emilia in agreement, “and it also helped that they got sponsored by Wolfenstine to help run their business.”

“Wolfenstine?” Lakshman asked, reacting with surprise at hearing such an unexpected name. “What’s he been sponsoring them with?”

“Potions, items, armours, pets, and a few other things.”

“It seems that he’s getting both the Vampires and Werewolves in catching the pets and preparing armour for the shops,” added Ondine thoughtfully, and he nodded in understanding.

The Phoenix Titan had been plagued by the guilt of not being able to save those that were close to him, including his own family and friends. It brought him down, but after returning and seeing the fruits of his good deeds taking form and enabling others to make a new life for themselves made him feel very happy. To him, he could not bring back those that lost their lives but the sacrifice was worth it seeing what was in front of him. For this, he was grateful for everyone that fought with him.

They began visiting each and every shop to check what they were selling to their customers. The first shop they visited had crystals of different kind for use such as Energy Crystals, Water Crystals and Red Crystals that are mainly used as catalysts for magic purposes. The next shop was filled with the sounds made by animals locked in their cages. There were cats, dogs, goats and even owls. The shop after that had scrolls that could be used to summon things like water, utensils and so on.

“Venezuela gave her approval to have the magicians in the capital make and distribute magic scrolls for everyday uses,” explained Emilia when Lakshman stared at them in amazement.

“Oh. Alright then,” he said, smiling and feeling at the management that his wives had done in his absence.

Each and every shop was different to the rest, starting from its interior design, to the items it sold, and to the rates it sold at. There was also no shortage of customers coming and going from here, which made it safe to assume that business was running smoothly for this Phoenix Alley.

Every so often, they ran into people that Emilia seemed to know, and she greeted them in a friendly manner. They would converse briefly about how each of their lives were and even thank the Phoenix Titan for granting them a second chance at life.

“So, you see,” she said after bidding them farewell and looking at her husband, “everyone here is really grateful to you.”

This made him smile and say, “I’m happy that these people are able to earn money and live a better life than in slavery.”

“I agree,” she said and moved over to wrap her arm through his and leaned her head on his shoulder. “I, too, am happy.”

He was amazed by her being romantic, so he responded by moving his hand upward to pat her on the head. Seeing them being lovey-dovey made his other wives jealous and made them come to try and hug him as well. It turned into a humorous scene of them vying to be on his side.

“I thought we agreed not to compete anymore, Emi!” Silvera exclaimed irritably.

“Yes, but… well… blame the mood,” said Emilia after much thought and smiled sheepishly at them.

Silvera looked annoyed, but she conceded and said, “Fine, but I’m taking his other side!”

“No! I’m taking his side!” Sonia said, trying to push her away, but Silvera was too strong to be moved.

Their husband was a little taken aback by their competitive spirit and said, “Wait. Wait. Don’t fight.”

“This is between women, Lucky and we have our pride to uphold to be the one at your right side!” Sonia said to him firmly while staring at Silvera seriously.

“I, too, have it so budge off, Sonia!” Silvera retorted, glaring angrily back at her.

Ondine and Tetra watched the scene of them bickering and only sighed while muttering, “So childish.”

Just then, someone else swooped in and grabbed Lakshman’s other side while claiming, “If you’re going to continue to argue, then I’ll help myself to be at his right side!”

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They turned in surprise and saw that it was Cantia, who was in her humanoid form and grinning from ear to ear with happiness.

“That’s unfair!” The two previously bickering women complained indignantly.

“Well, it’s your fault for wasting time arguing instead of being decisive,” replied Cantia with a shrug of her shoulders, “but thanks to that, I could get here so thanks you two!”

Both Sonia and Silvera could not believe what they just heard and could only glare at her irritably while gritting their teeth tightly. To Lakshman, he almost thought he was witnessing two beasts eying another angrily.

“I thought what you might be up to but… this?” Said a familiar voice and they turned to see Venezuela and Erza standing a few meters away with their eyebrows raised.

“Honestly, I assumed you’d be shopping or something but being romantic in the middle of the street in broad daylight? I could never have imagined it,” said Venezuela with a cheeky smile.

“Vena! Erza! You came!” Lakshman said happily.

In his happiness and his feelings for them since they worked hard in his absence made him break free from both Emilia and Erza to walk over and hug each of them. Everyone was surprised by his unexpected action that they looked on in awe as he took turns to hug Venezuela and then Erza before withdrawing.

“You two worked so hard in my place! Because of you, this place can give these people a new life! Thank you so much!” He told them earnestly.

Both Venezuela and Erza were momentarily lost for words because of how amazing it was to be thanked by their husband. Till now, they had always done what was best and never cared if they were rewarded or appreciated since it was their duty and they did not want to disappoint him. Now, seeing their beloved thanking them and appreciating them for their hard work made them feel very happy and joyous inside.

“We… We were just doing our job,” said Venezuela shyly with a blushed face.

“We didn’t want to disappoint you,” added Erza with a blushing face.

“Oh! You’ll never disappoint me! You’re my wives! How can I feel disappointed in you?” He asked them, to which the two ladies could only smile in embarrassment from being praised so much.

“Don’t praise them too much, Lucky. They might soar into the sky and never come back down,” joked Silvera while eying them cheekily.

“Is that jealousy that I sense from you, Sil?” Asked Cantia from her side in her cheeky manner.

“No!” Silvera responded flatly, looking suddenly irritated. “They worked hard on getting approvals and land for these people, so why would I be jealous of them?”

Cantia grinned and looked at her husband before saying, “Actually, Lucky, Sil also helped.”

The Demon Slayer suddenly became flustered by the woman’s sudden reveal and exclaimed, “Stop that, Cantia!”

She tried to grab Cantia, but the humanoid cat woman easily dodged her and went over to her husband’s side to continue the explanation.

“When this place first launched, there were some goons that came to ruin the place, but Silvera came in disguise and beat them up black and blue. Then she declared that this place is under the protection of the Phoenix Titan and anyone that dares to mess with it will face a lifetime imprisonment regardless of their social status!”

“Wow…!” Lakshman reacted with awe and turned to her, who became more flustered. “Silvera, you did that?”

“I… Well…” she began awkwardly, fidgeting with her fingers.

Before she could say anything further, she was suddenly wrapped up by the hug that her husband was giving her. She was so surprised that she yelped in surprise and stiffened up.

Then he released her and asked questioningly, “Why didn’t you say so?!”

“It… It wasn’t worth… mentioning…” she muttered, curling her silver hair and looking embarrassed.

“It wasn’t worth mentioning? Sil…!” He said, looking hurt by her words much to her surprise. “Why?”

“I… thought you might be upset since… you know… I proactively attacked them, and I could’ve been injured,” she said weakly.

She was thinking that she might get reprimanded for acting rashly and getting into a risky situation. However, she felt lost when she saw the dejected look on his face.

“Sil…! Why would I be upset with you?” He asked, and in an instant, she blinked in shock. “Why would I be angry at you? You are part of my family, and I could never get angry at you or anyone else because I trust you! I know you would do things because there was a strong reason that compelled you to and the same goes for everyone else. So, please, get the notion that I might get upset or angry because you do this or that out of your system and be proud of what you’ve done! Okay?”

Silvera stared at him in awe, not because of being reprimanded but because of the affection he was showing her. Till now, she had thought to act in order to not bring any shame to her husband’s fame as the Phoenix Titan, but that one time she had no choice but intervene because it was the right thing to do even though she might get hurt herself.

She felt down at her narrow-minded thinking and felt ashamed of not being open with him as she finally said, “Sorry.”

A moment later, she was hugged once again by Lucky, who chuckled and said, “Oh, you silly. There’s nothing to apologise for.”

Once they separated and were looking warmly at one another, Cantia could not help by say, “Ah. Lucky, before I forget, Sil’s also got a new title from the capital’s people from then on.”

“What’s that?” He asked while Silvera looked alarmed and motioned her hands to stop her.

Cantia grinned and announced, “The Night Lady.”

There was a moment of pause before the passers-by suddenly glanced at them curiously before beginning to whisper her name to one another. This surprised Lakshman, and everywhere he looked, her name alone caused a stir among the people around as it seemed to have started a discussion.

“Something else you’re hiding from me, Sil?” Lakshman asked, turning to look at her with curiosity.

“I… Um…” she began hesitantly with a guilty look before finishing with, “I’ll tell you when we get home.”

He noted that she was looking really embarrassed from the moment Cantia let out that name. So, he decided to pursue about it once they get back home. Instead, he decided to ask a question that had been bothering him and turned to Venezuela to ask it.

“How did you find us and how did you get here?”

“Aren’t you forgetting that I can use Phoenix Portal as well?” Venezuela asked, and Lakshman made a “oh” expression on his face as he remembered that small detail. “As for how I found you; it was easy. I just asked a Phintex Raja and connected the portal to here.” Then she folded her arms and smiled as she asked, “Still, I didn’t expect I’d run into a scene where Sonia and Silvera are competing with one another.”

“Emi started it!” Silvera quickly said, happy to pass the spotlight off her.

“Like I said, the mood was just too good to miss the opportunity,” admitted Emilia with a shy smile, which made both Sonia and Silvera become annoyed.

“Stop being so childish, you two,” said Cantia with a laugh, but the two women switched their glare to her and firmly replied, “No!”

Lakshman laughed at the humorous scene before turning back to Venezuela and Erza and asking them, “Okay. So, how did it go with the deal?”

For a while, he had been concerned about how the meeting went between Venezuela and Erza and the other kings. He was under the impression that Venezuela and Erza had attended a meeting with the King of Mardana Kingdom and the King of Ashtra Kingdom regarding providing safety for safe transportation due to an increase in monsters. As such, he did not know about the fact that it was for something more than just for transportation.

“Oh. Um… Well…” began Venezuela hesitantly, a little confused about what to say.

She had no idea what to say to him because she did not expect him to be so curious about it. Thankfully for her, Erza spoke up on her behalf and gave a reasonable explanation that did not trigger his Elemental Sense alarm. They all knew that he was able to tell when someone lied to him and was clever to bypass it in a unique way.

“Yes. They agreed to the deal although they made hefty demands. There’ll be another meeting between the leaders of each kingdom in a few days’ time to outline the contract and enter into an agreement.”

“Oh. That’s good then if things worked out in the end,” he said with a smile, feeling slightly relieved that everything was going smoothly although a part of him sensed that something was off.

Erza noticed the change in his facial expression and quickly shot a furtive look towards Emilia with a furtive look to send an invisible message to her. She wanted him to get distracted, which Emilia understood and instantly diverted his attention away by pointing at another shop. Successfully grabbing his attention, she led him away along with Cantia, Sonia, Silvera and Sonia to visit that shop, leaving Venezuela, Erza, Ondine and Tetra behind.

They watched them go before Ondine turned to face Venezuela and Erza and asked, “So… What really happened?”

Venezuela looked grim while Erza looked serious as she said, “He didn’t agree to the deal and warned us that if we don’t agree to his deal in the next meeting, the Mardana Kingdom will declare war on the Floria Kingdom.”