One live sample delivered, one medical check-up, and one hour of reports later, I am finally on my way home from work.

Unlike when we lived in the center of base, being hidden away from the civilians, Sky and I now live in the western expansion of the base along with the Kobold Refugees. As per the contract I made with the General, a mansion was set aside for us to live in.

The property is an old farmstead mansion with a barn for keeping horses. There was details about the original owners and the history of the property, but I didn’t care about any of that. It has land, plenty of room for family, and if we want to, we can raise animals once the fields are restored.

Right now, the property is in need of a lot of work. The land is overgrown and can’t really be taken care of until the spring. Several of the rooms on the east side of the mansion need repairs along with most of the roof, which means that the top floors are currently sealed off to help keep the heat in. On the ground floor, all the windows have been replaced in a rush job before the winter got too bad, and most of the rooms on the ground floor as well as the basement have been cleaned and fixed up to make the place habitable, until the building can get some proper repairs later.

The plan is to eventually have my family move in with us once the place is ready. With eighteen bedrooms, we definitely have the space for them, and this would also clear up another home for other people to move into on base. Right now, though, with the place still being worked on, I didn’t feel that it would be right to move them in yet.

I honestly didn’t even want to move in there with Sky yet until it was closer to being finished, but after I brought Sky over to come and see it, she immediately fell in love with the place and wanted to move in as soon as possible.

I wasn’t able to say no. She just looked so excited.

Now, thankfully, the mansion's heating is still working just fine and several of the rooms come with massive fireplaces that we keep burning at all hours. So, even with the upper floors being sealed off with tarps for construction and maintenance, the house is staying nice and toasty warm.

And the fireplaces are very nice. My favorite one is in the parlor with the old piano sitting in the corner.

We took the hide from that mutated bear I killed so long ago and laid it out in front of that fireplace.

And then we spent the whole afternoon making love and drinking wine with meat and some cheeses, right there on top of the back of the very thing that I killed to protect Sky. Rolling around and holding each other as the fireplace warms us up and the snow falls outside~ So fucking romantic!

Walking through the freshly shoveled streets of the base and past some on looking people, I have to cover my cheeks as I blush at the memory of that night. The ways that the light of the fire played over Sky’s sweat soaked olive skin. The way that her eyes looked as she held out her arms, beckoning me towards her as she laid open and exposed before me. The taste of wine on her lips as we lost ourselves in our embrace. The sounds of her moaning in my ears as I worked my hand between her~

I shake myself about and giggle like a mentally insane schoolgirl as my mind skydives into a lake of naughty memories. The few people that are out and about despite the weather, give me weird looks and whisper among themselves at the sight of me. I just smile and wave, happy because I am on my way home after a long couple of days roughing it out in the cold with not even a tent or a sleeping bag to rest in.

Walking through base, I get to see a number of people on my way home. There are those on their way to a restaurant or a store for shopping. Occasionally, there are kids playing in the snow. Walking past a home, I might find someone working in their garage by the fire of a burner or shoveling snow.

While my Demons and I have only been revealed to the public for a little over a month now, public opinion on us so far seems rather positive. It helps that I did that speech in front of all those people, and even the damn //World Tree making an appearance; that event quickly spreading across the base like wildfire before the day was over. But there is also the fact that my Demons and I have been putting in work to help people.

My own exploits since coming to live here have been spread like propaganda, many people learning that the land they are currently living on was gotten with my help. And almost as soon as my Demons were awake, the Army had all of us out and working. Demolishing broken down housing to make room for new homes, tearing apart trees with our bare hands for firewood, helping with a construction project by carrying around ungodly amounts of material, all while in clear view of anyone willing to watch. All to show that we are working with and following the orders of the Army and are here to help.

They even had me put on a show where I used my magic to clear away an oncoming horde of monsters that was attacking the walls, recording the whole thing to help show everyone that I am here to defend them and protect what is theirs. Some real patriotism shit.

Thankfully, they haven't forced me to do any acting or playing dress-up doll or anything like that yet... As long as I dress like a soldier and wear my armor with a little American flag on the shoulder, the boss is happy.

Although, there have been some talks about having Sky and me doing a photo shoot together at the council meetings. One of the proposed ways to help the humans get more comfortable around the Kobolds and my Demons. The idea being that it would be harder for people to not like us or fear us, if the Demon Queen and the Empress of the Kobolds were to dress-up and look good for a camera, maybe answer a few questions or whatever…

The problem though is that I am having a hard time keeping this from happening…

Personally, I don’t like getting my picture taken unless it is for something fun, like when I had Sanders take my picture in front of the ‘Fluffy not Dragon, Dragon’ that I killed. Modeling for people to look at me? Not my idea of fun. Secondly, I don’t like the idea of letting strangers get their grubby hands on pictures of Sky… No thank you!

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Regretfully though, the General knows that I don’t like this idea, and he has been pushing for it as his own personal petty revenge. And with how things are going, I might end-up getting overruled and pushed into doing this event come spring. With the final nail in the coffin being Sky herself. When I told her about it, she seemed to love the idea, so I am basically screwed.

Oh well, I’ll just put up with it when it happens. If I have to wear a dress and put on some makeup to help with interspecies relations, then I am just going to have to do it… The only problem is what dress should Sky wear. I got her that really nice red one that I really like, but that shows off way too much cleavage, and that is only for me to enjoy. Not some guy on a lonely night…

“Mrrrrrrmrr~”

Thinking about that actually starts to get me a bit pissed off and growling in public, so I quickly pull my mind away from that subject. There is no point in thinking about some imaginary guy touching himse-

No! Nope, nope, nope, nope! Not thinking about that! Subject change! Thoughts are going off the rails anyways. What was I thinking about before? Damn ADD… Oh! The new house. That’s right, I got sidetracked because I started thinking about the fireplace and Sky and then I got horny and then it all went downhill from there… Ah, my head is a mess…

Running my fingers through my hair to try and physically drag my thought back on track, I look around as I am getting close to the next gates leading towards the western expansion. Next to the gate is a sign reading that beyond this point is the Kobold Refugee Zone, and that anyone that wishes to enter must state their intentions and have their stuff checked before entry. There is also a bunch of parts about behavior and punishment for assaulting or abusing the Kobolds.

Most people that come through here are traders that are interested in the crafts made by the Kobolds. They are very good at carving, sewing, knitting, and even making stuff from the bones and hide of monsters, and they have taken to our materials like fish to water.

Our sewing needles are obviously better than the bone ones they had been using, and they happily trade for our fabrics and anything else they can use, transforming it all into alien and colorfully patterned projects that people are quickly taking a liking to.

And the best part is that the Kobolds will trade for things that most humans wouldn’t value very much. You have an old hammer at home that you aren’t using? Well, for a Kobold, that is not just a tool but also a valuable weapon. You have some old clothes that is too torn or worn-out to wear? Crafting materials that the Kobolds will happily take and use. And gods save you if you walk in here with any metals or shiny trinkets to trade.

With the Kobolds being taught how to smelt metals with a higher melting point than copper and figuring out new ways of making molds, they have even begun to dip their toes into decorative metal crafting, blacksmithing, and jewelry making.

Just a month after they have started to live here and make a life for themselves, I even saw a Kobold’s first attempt at making a Kobold sized medieval helmet for a suit of armor, the plans incorporating monster bone, armor plating, and hide, into the designs.

Previously, the Kobolds had been sitting at a tribal level of development, but after moving in, they have already started to rapidly work on catching up with us. And while I doubt that they will being using computers or guns any time soon, I imagine that it won’t be long until they are close to our current level of development.

As I think about the Kobolds and jog down the road towards home, I see the Kobolds’ colorful city off in the distance. Even from here, I can see that it is a nest of movement and colors as the residents move about with a renewed purpose that can’t even be dampened by the cold of a hellish winter.

I smile at the distant city and decide to give it a visit again here soon.

Arriving at my property, the first view of the place honestly isn’t all that amazing. Trees and plant life are everywhere and besides a single cleared road leading up to the mansion, the fields are covered in several feet of snow with large plants peeking out of it.

A couple of acres away, the old barn has still not received any maintenance and won’t be until the mansion itself is finished. So the barn is currently looking like a bit of an eyesore and is most definitely infested with rats. [Thankfully normal sized ones.]

Walking up the long driveway to home, I look over the place. Some more of the windows on the second floor have been replaced, and more tarps have been installed in the second floor’s exposed walls, so work must have started some on the interior up there while I was gone.

Standing outside of the front entrance on the porch is a pair of Kobold Warriors. They are both wearing thick armor made from the hides, bone, and the armored plating of some monster, and are wielding tall spears with metal tips. They stand by burning braziers with their backs straight and their eyes vigilantly looking for dangers.

They had long noticed me approaching, and both offer me a bow as I approach the door.

“”Wife Lain. Welcome home.”” They both say in rough English.

I just blush and don’t bother trying to correct them. The Kobolds don’t exactly have a concept for dating. For them, you are either mates or you’re not, and as far as they are concerned, Sky and I are already a pair. So, I am Wife…

Teaching the Kobolds about human courting traditions and other stuff will have to come after they get better at English.

“Thank you.” I tell them as one moves to open the door for me. “You guys aren’t too cold out here, are you?”

They just tilt their heads at my question, not knowing the words yet, so I point at them and mimic being cold.

Understanding hits them, and they just smile and shake their heads. Pointing to the fires, they knock their spears on the ground and stand up straight, one of them simply saying, “Honor!” with a big smile.

I just return the smile and nod. As long as they are happy to stand out in the cold and be guards, I’m not going to stop them. So long as they don’t hurt themselves.

I think I’ll make them some hot tea or something for them in a bit. Let them know that I appreciate their hard work. Anyone willing to stand out in the cold for hours just to protect Sky is good in my book.

The Kobold Guard closes the door behind me as I walk into the entry way of our new home. The place is still in the midst of maintenance, above me, a man is up on a tall ladder, busily cleaning the hanging crystal chandelier as carpenters are fixing up the grand staircase that leads up to the second floor; the banisters looking much better now than they used to with a nice fresh shine and polish.

“I’m home!” I call out happily.

Sky is quick to happily call back to me, and from the sound of it, she is in the living room. Heading her way, I check in different rooms and see the work that has been done so far while I’ve been gone, smiling as I see that everything is progressing nicely and smoothly.

Arriving in the living room, I find Sky and my family happily talking over tea. More Kobold guards are standing by in the corners and one is even dressed as a maid for some reason and is happily serving tea. I’m assuming that it is a female Kobold, because again, maid, and honestly, she is looking like she is having the greatest day of her life as she serves Sky a fresh cup of tea. She is rewarded with a cookie, and I pretend not to notice as she hides it away in a pocket like it is some kind of treasure or a newly minted family heirloom.

Please actually eat the cookie…

Sky stands up and runs over to give me a hug and a kiss, the hem of her dress fluttering as she moves.

“Welcome home. Your family came over to visit. How was training?”

I have to fight down my blush at being kissed right in front of my parents and my sister, but swallowing down my embarrassment, I smile and take her hand as I walk us to the couch to sit down and relax with everyone.

“I had fun out there. My Demons got to let lose a bunch and have fun too, I’ll tell you all about it.”

Sitting us down next to mom, I give her a hug and then thank the Kobold maid for the tea.

Getting comfortable and holding my love in my arms, I enjoy yet another peaceful day at the end of the world with my family.