A man wearing a suit of armor pushed aside a heavy wooden door. He stepped into the room, his boots leaving deep impressions on the plush carpet behind himself. Ahead of him, a woman was sitting on a throne-like chair, a cup of tea in her hands. A saucer lay on the table in front of her, on top of a pile of documents. She raised an eyebrow at the approaching knight as she placed her cup of tea onto the saucer, folding her hands in her lap, smoothing out the wrinkles in her noble dress. “Well?”

“Everything you’ve asked for has been secured, Grand Duchess,” the knight said, dropping down to one knee. “The magicians are ready to proceed with the summoning ritual at any time.”

The woman, Apollonia, nodded, her golden hair falling in front of her face. She swept it back with her hand and leaned into her seat. “And what of the other dukes? Have they responded?”

“Everyone you’ve sent the invitation to has accepted,” the knight said. He added after a short pause, “Including the demon lord.”

Apollonia’s hand that was reaching for her cup of tea froze in midair. “Her? She accepted an invitation? She is personally coming to attend my autumn banquet?”

The knight nodded, and Apollonia collapsed back into her chair. “Unbelievable,” she said, deep wrinkles appearing on her forehead. “She turned down every single invitation ever sent by any noble. For what reason is she attending the banquet? Could she have found out?”

“Anything is possible, Grand Duchess,” the knight said, his knee still on the floor. “While I was outside, I couldn’t shake off the feeling of a pair of eyes watching me. I wasn’t able to find anyone, but I was highly uncomfortable.” He paused as Apollonia’s green eyes narrowed into slits. “I don’t mean to alarm you, and it’s possible my paranoia was acting up again. But as an insurance, may I suggest relocating the position of the summoning portal? The fortress by the dragons is relatively empty, and no one will travel that far north during the banquet.”

“Very well, Daniel. I leave it to you,” Apollonia said. “Remember, you’re my most trustworthy retainer. Don’t betray my expectations.”

“If all goes well, you’ll be empress before the flowers bloom next spring,” the knight said, lowering his head even further.

A faint smile appeared on Apollonia’s lips. “And if things don’t go well?”

“They won’t. Nothing short of a natural disaster will stop your plans from coming to fruition,” the knight said and raised his head, meeting his master’s gaze through his visor. “Even if it costs me my life, I will accomplish anything you ask of me.”

“Don’t be stupid, Daniel,” Apollonia said. “The last thing I want you to do is die. Do you understand?”

“Yes, Grand Duchess!”

***

“Excuse me.” A man with a mustache leapt onto the driver’s seat of the wagon that Vur’s party was in. He nodded at the five people before facing Tafel. “We’re about to enter Grand Duchess Apollonia’s territory.”

“About time,” Alora said as she stretched her arms and legs out. “It was getting too cramped in here.” Her gaze drifted about before landing on Stella and Mervin. “Especially with these two annoying things talking up a storm.”

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“It’s not my fault!” Stella wailed. “This stupid genie is too persistent! Hurry up and make a wish, Vur. I can’t stand this anymore! He’s so annoying that he makes me want to destroy the whole world to get him to be quiet!”

The man with the mustache cleared his throat. “Our leader says we’ll have to part ways soon. We’ve brought you to the nearest human fortress according to our original agreement.” He flinched as Stella glared at him. “I’ll be seeing you then. It was nice traveling with you.” Before Vur or Tafel could respond, the mustached man leapt off of the driver’s seat and entered a different wagon in the convoy.

Tafel poked Mervin’s side. “You should really take a hint. Women don’t like men who are too persistent despite stories saying otherwise.”

Mervin shook his head. “I’m sure I can sway Stella’s heart with enough time.” A flower blossomed in his palm, and he flew up to Stella, holding it out towards her. “Please, accept this small token of my love. Even if you won’t accept me, this—”

“Vur! Hurry up and wish!” Stella tugged on Vur’s hairs, interrupting Mervin’s speech. “You trust me, right? Right? I was the one that told you to become an elementalist dragon to grow up faster. And I wasn’t wrong; you really became a full-fledged dragon, didn’t you?” Stella bobbed her head up and down, speaking again instead of letting Vur open his mouth. “Then you can trust me again. Your best interests are in my best interests, and you won’t regret listening to my advice. Okay? Tafel wants you to become more independent and develop your own hobbies and likings, but this dumb genie will drive me insane before that happens! So I’ll tell you what to wish for, got it? Actually, I’ll give you a whole list of things you can wish for, and then you can pick one of those items.”

Vur nodded. “That sounds a lot easier than finding out what I want by myself.”

“You’re being used by Stella again,” Tafel said with a sigh.

“I never used Vur in the first place,” Stella said, sticking her tongue out at Tafel. She flicked her wrist, and a fireball flew out of Vur’s shoulder, striking towards Mervin, who had flown even closer to Stella. “Okay, let me brainstorm some ideas for you.” She put her fingers on her temples, below her horns, and closed her eyes. A high-pitched hum echoed from her throat as her forehead entered a cycle of scrunching up and relaxing. “Okay! These are my wish suggestions: Wish for the ability to take on a second subclass. Wish for all the gold that Mervin’s capable of making. Wish for a never-ending jug of alcohol. Wish for a plate that can duplicate food infinitely. Wish for a larger mana pool. Wish for more physical strength. Wish for the ability to speak two sentences at once. Wish for the ability to think about two different things with a hundred percent of your thinking ability at once. Wish for more stamina. Wish for an aura of charisma that makes people automatically trust you. Wish for faster reflexes. Wish for the ability to go to sleep instantly without tossing and turning for thirty minutes. Wish for Tafel to be more affectionate—”

“Excuse me?”

“Wish for Alice to be less grumpy.”

“The hell?”

“Wish for your elementals to become stronger. Wish for Mervin to become mute. Wish for Mervin to fall in love with his own reflection. Wish for Mervin to fall in love with a rock. Wish for Mervin to leave your cute, adorable fairy queen daughter alone. Wish for Mervin to go away. Wish for”—Stella paused and took in a deep breath, her face bright red from speaking nonstop—“the ability to never have to use the bathroom again. Wish for a wallet that always has money inside of it. Wish for all the mosquitoes in the world to die. Wish for more wishes. Actually, no, don’t. If you wish for more wishes, he’ll never leave. Wish for anything, please, just make a wish soon! There had to be something you liked in all my suggestions, right?”

Vur scratched his nose. “You spoke too fast. Can you repeat them?”

Stella’s face darkened. She flew down to the sun-like rune on Vur’s shoulder and patted the pattern. “Sheryl, it’s clear Vur doesn’t want to make a wish. Help me burn Mervin to ashes, okay?”

“I really think you should give up on Stella,” Tafel said to Mervin. “Fairies don’t feel love. She’ll really make you disappear, you know?”

“I don’t believe you,” Mervin said. “Stella’s so beautiful. I’m sure she’s even more of a beautiful person on the inside. She’s just saying those mean things because she’s shy.”