Cassmira lay in a massive bed with her heart still racing. She had never seen a party like that. She had danced with so many handsome men she lost count. She was free to drink and eat to her heart's content, talking with so many new people that her head was still spinning. She was aware that because of her carefree attitude, Captain Hassan was probably drinking himself to sleep right now, but she was sure his concerns were misplaced. She hasn't felt so free even back home. The people of Arcadia were so different that it was refreshing. They were honest and straightforward, but she saw the reasons why. With a flushed face, she mentally relived the mock, tournament-like duel between two Guardsmen for the right to dance with the girl they both liked. Their swords flashed with deadly grace, yet neither intended to hurt their opponent. They clashed and jumped away, engaging in feints and using skills that appeared simple, but she saw the awe on Captain Hassan's face. If those two impressed the veteran of forty years of bloody combat, that meant their abilities were genuine. She raised her hand into the darkness and sighed, slightly disappointed that no one had duelled for her...

She dropped her hand on the fluffy bed and took a deep breath. The mansion they had received was enormous. It was bigger than most of the mansions of Metaka's nobles, and Cassmira tried to separate her feelings from the reason why they were given it. The mansion, with its garden, would provide a perfect sanctuary for her and her brother. It was also big enough to provide quarters for all their servants and families. At first, Captain Hassan was highly pleased to learn that the entire complex was big enough for all the people with them and was also adequately fenced. Later, his smile faded when he realised that many more soldiers would be needed to secure this place properly. The entire company would likely have to stay. But that was Leo's and Hassan's problem. She had other concerns, and truth be told, she had no idea how to tackle her situation. Her father had encouraged them to learn as much as possible about Arcadia. While Leo thought their father wanted them to spy, that wasn't the case. In a moment of honesty, her father told her that he saw a future where only they could save Metaka, and Arcadia would be their only hope. Leo wouldn't understand that, so she must trust his Divination skills and guide her brother to form a lasting alliance with Arcadia. When she asked if it wasn't easier to arrange the marriage with the ruler of Arcadia, the Emperor just sadly shook his head. She now understood his answer a little bit better.

•••

Leonard sat at his desk, writing in his journal. He never wanted to keep one, but he simply knew that everything he learned, heard, or saw was far too important not to pen down. The avalanche of events that took place earlier took him by surprise, but it was a pleasant day. He took his time talking with some Arcadian nobles only to discover there were actually only two whose families held noble titles for generations. Lord Thiule and Lord General Blair, whose shared wedding party he was at, each belonged to one such house. Both of them, however, were far from what Leonard expected from his experiences with Metaka’s nobles. These two were more akin to Captain Hassan, an experienced warrior and commander. While talking with them, it was easy to feel their disregard for the traditional problems of nobles. Funnily enough, Leonard found their company easier to handle than the endless disputes about insignificant issues discussed back home.

However, first things first... The prosperity of Arcadia was unquestionable, and it was clear that King Theon had found a way to control the dungeons in ways unheard of. The unprecedented timidness of the Righteous Dungeon and everything it created for the people living in its safe zone was not only unheard of but awe-inspiring and terrifying at the same time. Some people Leonard talked with during the party claimed there were other dungeons in service of King Theon, which was alarming. If the Arcadians could call upon the might of a dungeon during a time of war, it would be disastrous for their enemies. Leonard stopped the hovering quill, but slowly, after careful consideration, he added a note. It couldn't be ruled out that they hadn’t already done that, which would explain the fall of Cridia. He sighed. There were so many mysteries around the Royal Family of Arcadia that Leonard doubted he would find the answers to them all. For now, his biggest problem to address was fairly concerning. There was no exchange of goods between Arcadia and Metaka. People were not travelling. Even monsters were nowhere to be seen on the border. Well, maybe in the mountains or the forests, but no one travelled outside Metaka's maintained roads and former Cridia's waterways. How could he find an excuse to leave this mansion and start meeting with the people?

KNOCK, KNOCK! Someone knocked at the doors despite the very late hour.

"Come in!"

•••

The next day, I found myself in a very uncomfortable position. Awkward even. Before we lazily got out of bed, it was already afternoon. I had even planned to skip that day officially and stay in bed, but unfortunately, I couldn't have two easy days in a row. For some mysterious reason, I had called a meeting of all my advisors and commanders a day after the party, and it was awkward to call it off now. The Dungeon Core me, with depleted humanity, was a scary guy... Surprisingly, the bulk of people attending were absolutely sober, and the rest were excused by the much more forgiving Dungeon Core me with replenished humanity. Luna and Blair had proposed a public gathering instead of a planned closed meeting, and after a relatively long moment, I agreed. Since morning, Amber had been deeply concerned about something. She patiently let the people who showed up in droves choose a few of their representatives to ask a few questions. After that, the discussion was inevitably focused on the rebellion. While I closely observed the people who brought that topic to light, Amber voiced her wish to save as many lives as possible.

"I have already dispatched Galahad and Morrigan. They will crush the rebellion," I stated without emotions, which caused one particular group of people to lose their smiles.

"Most of those people believed the lies of Cridian Nobles!" Amber said in a tone that was supposed to explain everything.

"That changes nothing. They rebelled against my rules and wished to break out of the kingdom. Two Legions have been ordered to capture their leaders and execute them."

"My Queen,” Ban started. “The King is right. You were much more benign than anyone could expect, yet the stupid and arrogant nobles wanted to drag the country into another civil war." Ban then bowed towards Amber, who frowned at him.

"Using two Legions will only frighten the people," she objected.

"The people are afraid, Amber, but that only means they would rather stick to what they know rather than wait things over." Irene slowly tapped the table thoughtfully. "I wouldn't blame the simple people who try their best to survive."

"But those nobles won't just give up! How many people have to die before that will end? I only ask for mercy for the people who were used by those nobles."

I nodded slowly. She was right, of course. I looked at the many people gathered in the Adventurer's Guild's conference room and internally smiled, knowing that the gossip about what happened here would reach the rebels long before my armies. The people of Avalon respected me but admired my wives. However, the respect that the majority of the people had was shallow. They knew only my generosity and kindness, so most of the wicked and selfish took it as a sign of weakness. That was why I was going to teach them fear. But I also knew the good or at least decent people would be terrified. So I was slightly ashamed of setting up Amber like that, but I was so proud of her. I wanted the people to know that it was her hand that stopped mine from completely crushing their little rebellion. Irene was probably aware of what I was doing, but I couldn't tell if she agreed with Amber or me. While Aoi and Lavender supported Amber, Luna and Hestia were silent. Their facial expressions showed only great pain and disappointment. Ban and Blair, however, were in favour of simply crushing the rebels, making an example of them.

"I will do it only because you asked me, my Love." I smiled warmly but noticed a few people who reacted strangely to this.

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"Thank you, Theon," she smiled in return, but her satisfaction wasn't meant to last long.

"I shall grant them mercy but not absolution." My voice was calm but cold. "Everyone actively involved in this act of treason will be punished. Some people more severely than others, but everyone. They will have one chance to surrender. Those who comply will live. To avoid spilling an ocean's worth of blood, I must demonstrate that I am capable of immediately and ruthlessly spilling a lake's worth."

"My Queen..." Blair raised his voice just enough to get her attention, interrupting her even before she spoke once again. "My heart is with you and your compassion, but my mind urges me to forgo any mercy for these people. If Berna seizes this chance and attacks us, these rebels will sabotage our defensive efforts. How many more people are going to suffer and die?"

"I am aware of that threat," Amber sighed and rubbed her forehead with one hand.

"This rebellion has no chance to succeed. They don't have enough soldiers, supplies, or time to form properly. We can speculate about their reasons and hold long debates about their motives." I slowly moved my gaze over the spectating crowd. Some of the people fidgeted uncomfortably under it, while others nodded thoughtfully. "But a crime was committed, and it's only natural that it would be punished. Those who instigated that rebellion and dragged innocent people into affairs over them will be executed, and their families will be exiled from Arcadia. Everyone else will face the trials, but they all will be stripped of the right to call themselves Arcadians."

Ban and Blair nodded at that and looked expectantly at me as if they anticipated my orders for them to go. I ignored them for now and instead ordered Sebastian to ensure every suspicious individual was shadowed and carefully observed. I wondered how many agents of various factions and nations had already infiltrated Avalon. While Slimes and Luna's agents caught spies daily, I was just sure that some of them managed to sneak in.

"Is there anything else that has to be addressed? … In that case, the meeting is over."

•••

"They must have gotten in with the latest influx of refugees somehow," Luna grumbled as she looked over the reports of her agents. We were sitting in our living room but were far from being cosy or relaxed before sleep.

"We can't hold everyone by the hand, Luna. Our citizens have to learn how to walk on their own. Besides, I am more than sure that most of our people are loyal." I shrugged and took a sip of orange juice. "The group that clumsily tried to form a resistance group was apprehended by the drunk patrons of Warren's tavern."

"Pfffft... Hahahahaha!" Hestia laughed uncontrollably.

"Hestia, this is not funny!" Luna frowned.

"Yes, it is!" Hestia took a deep breath and calmed down a little. "Imagine how delusional their proposition or speech was if even the drunk people couldn't stand them."

I snickered at that, and even Luna smiled a little bit. Amber, however, was sitting in silence, looking outside the window at the setting sun. "Amber?"

She looked at me with her eyes full of sorrow. I approached her and sat alongside her. She leaned over me and gripped her hot chocolate mug tighter. "Why? Why do they oppose us, Theon? Why do they reject the chance for a better life?"

"I don't know for sure, but I suspect a few factors," I replied after a moment. But before I could delve deeper into my thoughts, someone politely knocked, and I felt Sebastian outside the door. "Come in."

"My Majesties. Lord Zeus and the Metakan Envoys wish to speak with you."

I felt the surprised gazes of my wives, and I shrugged. "Any clue what they want?"

"No, my King."

"All right... Let them into the war room and tell them I'll join them in a moment." Once the doors closed behind Sebastian, I exhaled heavily and ran my fingers through my hair. I looked at my Ladies with a tired expression on my face. "Anyone want to go with me?"

"I will go..." Luna rose slowly from behind the desk.

"I should go as well *sigh*." Amber tugged the sleeve of my shirt. Just one glance at Irene, Hestia, Aoi, and Lavender told me they were not going anywhere.

We teleported in front of the war room, and I opened the heavy doors leading inside. Zeus was sitting casually at the table, but Princess Cassmira and Prince Leonard were standing awkwardly on the opposite side of the empty table.

"Good evening. Please take a seat, Princess, Prince." I pointed at the closest seats as my Queens and I took our seats. "You wanted to see me?"

"Yes, King Theon." Zeus' voice was tired. "I want to speak about the situation in the northeast."

"In that case, similar circumstances brought us here." Leonard lowered his head.

"Mhm..." I exhaled heavily. "Please continue."

Zeus nodded towards the Metakans, who looked at each other. The Princess took out some papers and gave them to the Slime butler standing nearby. Prince Leonard began to speak as the butler brought us the scroll.

"We were contacted by our agents who were gathering information about Cridian movements." Leonard's voice was full of shame, and he avoided eye contact. "According to the orders given to them long before founding the Kingdom of Arcadia, the same agents involved themselves with the rebellion against your rules, King Theon. After I gave them orders to stand down, they went rogue. I'm afraid that Metaka has unintentionally complicated the situation in Arcadia. We want to assure you of our support and will give you all the data we have about the agents involved in this scheme."

"I see." I nodded and opened the scroll. After glancing over it, I gave it to Luna, who studied it extensively. "Thank you for your honesty, Prince Leonard, Princess Cassmira. However, I don't believe that your agents alone would be able to instigate a rebellion."

"We are not sure. They might have used the secret stashes of armours and weapons smuggled to Cridia for this very reason." Leonard lowered his head even more. "Our orders, given by our father, were clear. Metaka and Arcadia should form a friendly relationship. I can't believe that some idiots would oppose the will of the Emperor!"

"Hmmm... That would explain from where the rebels obtained their gear." Amber hummed.

I studied our guests. Their shame and embarrassment were genuine, which gave me hope that they were being honest. The fact they told me this suggested that at least the Prince and the Princess were not directly involved. I allowed myself to smile. "Thank you for telling us. Do I understand correctly that the Empire of Metaka has dissociated itself from the actions of these individuals?"

"Yes! I issued the order that outlawed everyone involved. However, I'm afraid that this stain..."

"Don't worry about it, Prince. As long as you cooperate with us and provide us with all the information you can disclose, we will swiftly deal with these traitors. Those who betrayed Arcadia and the ones who betrayed Metaka."

"Thank you, King Theon." I saw their relief and decided to give them the benefit of the doubt.

"Lord Zeus?" I asked the Eternal, not giving the twins a moment to leave the room.

"I manifested in Estmir, which the rebels consider a rightful capital. Later that day, I manifested in other cities controlled by the rebels. I forced everyone to hear and recognize me. The people were shocked and terrified since I was pissed. I told them: King Theon Avalon, by the will of the five Gods of Arcadia and by the inexhaustible might of his Legions, is the only King of Arcadia. You have been deceived by the corrupted Cridian nobles who fled justice. You raised your arms in rebellion against the wise and generous King. By doing this, you raised against us, the Gods of Arcadia! You disobeyed me, Zeus, the Thunderer. You angered Hera, the Caretaker of Families. You awakened the ire of Zephyr, the Lord of the Winds. You displeased Eriar, the Silent Guardian. But what is worse, and where lies your greatest sin… You disappointed Hestia va'Theon, the Goddess of Arcadia and your Queen! Stop this madness. Lay down your weapons and surrender to the Legions of Avalon once they arrive so you will live. Fight, and you will die."

"Wow..." I looked at him and his wry smirk. "They listened?"

"Most of them." Zeus shrugged, and I saw the royal twins' shocked faces.

"I appreciate your help, Zeus. Thanks to you, many more people will survive this pointless battle." I sighed.

"Excuse me... Sir... Are you really a God?" Cassmira was pale as she gathered all her courage to ask.

"Indeed, Princess Cassmira Metaka. My name is Zeus."