"It's over..." I sighed in relief. Then, as I had always done, especially in my previous life, I counted the losses. "We have lost so many..."

We were sitting on the vast balcony of our palace, observing the setting sun. That was one of the most nervous days I had during my time in Nilmerthis. I wasn't even that afraid during my duel with Korkas. I sighed and looked afar. I could risk my life without fear after all, but you can't ever truly accept losing good soldiers.

"Janet and Blackbeard are returning. They will leave the prisoners at Bob's Dungeon. They managed to capture six Bernan airships and are currently arguing about how to split them. If not for the losses, I would be amused by how each one says the other should claim the ships..."

"How many people we have lost?" Irene asked, her head facing toward Berna.

"Three hundred eighty-seven," I replied. "I know that we have won. The Bernan Navy is crippled. They lost forty-five ships and six thousand paladins. They also lost tons of supplies, including wood, steel, armours, weapons, and food. Janet probably changed the tides of war when she decided to attack the Bernans back when their shield failed. Thanks to that, Legion Victrix simply overwhelmed the harbour and the camps around it."

"Theon, please never change." Amber hugged me, and the rest of my wives nodded slowly in agreement.

"I can't imagine the wars of your previous world if you considered four hundred people a heart-wrenching loss." Aoi lowered her head in sadness, but I smiled upon hearing that.

"Aoi... Hundreds of thousands of soldiers died during the resource war." I replied in a distant, cold voice. "After the war, we were unable to tell how many people died on both sides..."

"I didn't mean to..." She looked at me in shock. Almost all of them did, except Luna. She knew...

"It's okay." I took a deep breath. "After all, you should learn this from me. I won't pretend I was a saint or that I was simply following orders. I simply learned the value of life during the harsh school of war. I also learnt that often you have to take someone's life to protect others." I stood up and leaned on the vast stone railing. "This is one of the most important duties and heaviest burdens of all good commanders. When the battle is over, we mourn the fallen and pay respect to those who paid the ultimate price for the victory. Don't let their sacrifices be in vain."

I straightened and stood at the attention facing north. After a moment, I slowly raised my hand in salute. I stood like that for a minute of silence, facing north and praying for the souls of the new Heroes of Arcadia.

"The fallen shall be forever remembered..."

•••

Elisabeth trembled as a sudden chill ran down her spine. She quickly left her tent and looked towards the sky, where the light of day gave way to night's darkness. Soon, she saw the large shapes of HMS Victory, but it wasn't alone or accompanied by HMS Fairy; the flagship was following six other ships. Also near it was a fairly big ship with black sails. She hesitated momentarily but noticed a string of golden light rapidly approaching her camp. Before she was able to shout any orders, it was already in front of her, but she could relax.

"We were victorious, Princess Elisabeth. Admiral Sparrow is now returning home," Twirll announced as he landed inside the palms of her extended hands.

"I knew you would win," she replied with a smile as she raised her head, watching the airships. "Where is Fairy?"

"HMS Fairy returned home earlier. She was hit with an unknown Bernan weapon and was critically damaged." Twirll shook his head. "We had luck this time."

"And what about that ship with black sails?"

"It's Queen Anne's Revenge. I found them in time by pure luck and brought them to aid Victory. The other ships of the pirate fleet had already begun attacking the Bernans wherever it was going to hurt."

"So they really are our allies?" The young princess gave the golden bird an incredulous look.

"For now..." He comically shrugged, raising and dropping his wings. "Janet believes many of them want to change their ways."

As she silently watched night rapidly descend, the airships slowly continued their approach. It was only when they came close that she noticed Victory was being tugged along by the brigs.

The cold wind blew her hair, and she reluctantly returned to her tent. The dark clouds on the horizon, briefly and breathtakingly illuminated by the last rays of the sun, announced the incoming change of the weather.

•••

The next day started with rain. The first true spring storm this year hit Avalon alongside the cold wind. Arcadia, being under Zephyr's care, never experienced violent storms or troublesome winds. And while the current weather was unpleasant, it hardly was anything dangerous. But it perfectly reflected the sadness of people waiting for the arrival of HMS Victory. Despite the cold rain and even colder wind, the families and friends of sailors gathered near the flagship dock before noon. Victory landed silently, assisted by Queen Anne's Revenge and overlooked by the captured brigs. Janet managed to retrieve only forty bodies. I sent my Fenrirs to find remains of whoever they could, and until then, we made symbolic graves. At least I could do that much. I gave a speech about their bravery and ultimate sacrifice. The names of all the Arcadians who fell that day were carved with golden letters on the Monument of Heroes, guarded by the statue of Re-kari. The warm wind from the south started blowing away the stormy clouds as we sent my soldiers on their last journey. Irene and Hestia blessed the fallen, and pillars of golden light briefly connected Nilmerthis with the Heavens. But the families of the fallen were proud of their achievement as they mourned their relatives and friends. They were right; the twisted Bernan religion and order of their country favoured only humans… or just men. I won't even pretend to understand the Bernans, but it doesn't matter in the long run. With their Navy in ruin, the road to the Holy City of Jukanamar stood wide open, and Elisabeth had already made her first move.

The Metakans were present during the arrival of Victory and her impromptu battle group. It was the first time they saw the massive battleship, and even though it was almost completely destroyed, it still made a lasting impression on them. They also attended funerals and placed the flowers in front of the Monument. It was a simple gesture that meant a lot to the gathered people. I appreciated their presence, but I saw their quizzical looks and confusion. Luna whispered to my ear that they likely had learnt some details about the battle, but I simply shrugged it off. I was grateful for the simple gesture from the Metakans, which was unthinkable for the gathered people. Their simple presence filled them with pride. Many people were present at the ceremony, but I was quite surprised to see Ian, who was clenching his fists and staring at the ground. Behind him stood Sally and Myrna, who put her hand on his shoulder. Olivia and Shirley were present as well, with their eyes red from tears. The two of them discussed something, and they turned towards Ian, whose facial expression changed, and he nodded with determination.

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

•••

After the ceremony, I returned to the dock of HMS Victory, accompanied by Luna and Aoi. To my surprise, Ian was standing on the wharf of the harbour and staring at the great hole in the flagship. In the distance, under a large tent, a couple of people who usually followed Ian were working, checking the various charts and pieces of the destroyed equipment. A heated discussion ensued between the two Artificers, but they calmed down as soon as Ian's gaze turned in their direction. We slowly approached him, and without even looking at me, he asked, "Where did we make a mistake, my Lord?"

"You haven't made any, Ian." I placed my hand on his shoulder. "Victory managed to return home thanks to your work."

"But..."

"This is the reality of war, my friend. The other side wants to win as well," I told him, pulling my hand back. "You lost someone you know?"

"A student of mine died..." he admitted with a heavy heart. "Maybe you remember him... His name was Mike."

"Oh no... Mike." I slowly nodded with understanding. That's why Olivia and Shirley were present at the ceremony. "Please accept my condolences..."

Ian nodded in silence and calmed down a bit. "We need better ships, my Lord."

"I fully authorise the Iowa project—you know, the one you’re working on for Janet in secret," I said simply. "You will have to work on much smaller destroyers and then cruisers and frigates."

He turned around in surprise. "Thank you, my Lord."

"If you want some hints, simply ask me next time. Iowa class was already old when I was born."

"I will... My King, can you review the plans before we start building?" he asked hesitantly and looked at me.

"All right." I nodded and smiled flatly. "But only on the functionality side of the project. Don't expect me to fix your calculations."

•••

Aoi took Janet, and they went to find Olivia and Shirley. Luna and I returned to the Palace where the Empress was already waiting. She sat in the tea room with my wives, chatting with Lavender. No one from her entourage had accompanied her, and she must have seen through my Pokerface again because she smiled as she guessed what I had on my mind.

"Oh, you have no idea how loudly Vargas protested." She made me chuckle a little bit as I sat down.

"I would probably do the same in his place," I admitted. "I assume you have reasons for meeting with us without witnesses."

"A few, actually..." She exhaled heavily and gripped her cup tightly. "I would like to spend more time in Avalon, but time is crucial yet fleeting."

"What is bothering you, Empress Matilda?" I asked and picked up my teacup covertly delivered by my Slime Maids.

"Oh, many things... Some of those problems can be solved, but some others are out of my reach no matter how much I try—until I heard about you." She smiled faintly. "I will be honest with you. I beg you to save my children."

She lowered her head and froze in that pose. I sighed, somehow expecting something like this. "How can I save them? If you wish them to stay in Arcadia, then by all means, they are free to do so. But that is not what you are asking me for, am I right?"

"It's true." She raised her head and took a deep breath. "To hell with it..." She muttered under her breath and focused her gaze solely on me. "As you know, once Darius dies, Vettalia and Guad will leap at each other with knives."

I nodded, and she coldly smirked. "While both of them accept me, and they love Leo and Cass, so after Darius' death, my children should be fine. I have no clue how much you know, most probably almost everything, but I will pretend that I don't know anything about your spies in Metaka, and you will pretend you are hearing everything for the first time." She grinned at me, and I shook my head in amusement. I started liking her. "In the case of Vettalia, she would probably exile me under the pretence that I wanted to stay with my children in Arcadia. I can't say what Guad would do, but I doubt he would kill me. He can exile me or even try to marry me."

"That's..." Luna puffed her cheeks, and Lavender looked terrified.

"That wouldn't be without precedent in Metaka. First and foremost, I'm not his or Vettalia's mother. I'm thirty-five years old. He is forty-three, and Vettalia is forty-four." Matilda waved her hand, and then she took a better look at Luna and Lavender and smirked. "Your beauty standards would probably make both Guad and Vettalia furious, albeit for different reasons. Nonetheless, I'm still considered beautiful in Metaka despite my age."

We tried our best not to laugh, but that was inevitable. Lavender was the first to lose it, followed by Luna and me. Matilda squinted her eyes dangerously and asked very, very coldly," What's so funny?"

"My dearest Empress Matilda. Despite how we look, you are, in fact, the youngest person in this room." Lavender smiled widely at her.

"Oh..." Matilda looked incredulous, so Luna revealed her fox ears and four fluffy tails. "You are a Kitsune! Then you are the Summoned Hero!"

"Tsk... If you must, I prefer to be called Champion." I sighed.

"Anyway!" she shook her head angrily, probably at herself for trailing off. "Vettalia and Guad are not a problem. The problem is a small but very determined faction of nobles."

We stopped smiling and started paying attention. To be honest, I wasn't surprised all that much. This was a fairly common occurrence in my previous world history. I sighed, mentally checking the royal inheritance chaos bingo list. "Let me guess. The distant relative of the Emperor, whose claims to the throne are acceptable but insufficient for as long as the Emperor's children are alive, is most probably leading that faction."

"You are correct," she shrugged. "I'm not afraid for Leonard, to be honest. He is a very skilled warrior, so as long as he stays in Avalon or travels with guards, he should be fine. Besides, I'm going to directly order him to ignore anything coming from Metaka in the near future. I'm worried about Cassmira. While I can try to order her to do the same, she won't listen. They definitely are going to use her."

"I could probably assign a few Praetorians to guard her..." I started, but she shook her head in disagreement.

"That wouldn't be a problem as long as she stays in Avalon. I don't believe anyone can touch her. No..." She took a deep breath, sipped tea, and wandered with her gaze over the trees and flowers blooming behind the glass wall in the adjacent greenhouse. "The only way to legitimize that man in the eyes of the people of Metaka, despite him being the relative of Emperor Darius, would be for him to marry Cassmira."

"I'm rather confused, Empress Matilda..."

"Oh, stop it. I came to your home, begging you for a favour. I'm Matilda."

"Then I'm Theon." I shrugged. "Still..."

"Only you can save my daughter, Theon." I saw how she fidgeted uncomfortably. With another heavy breath, she finally said what she had on her mind. "I want you to take Cassmira as your fiancee."