"Hello! My name is Maya! What's your name?"

"As a foolish little girl, I knew nothing about politics, nobility, or facades. I was the daughter of Divitry, the dragon king, the ninth ruler of this kingdom and its dragons. I… I wanted… I was naive. I should have just gone along with things, and kept my mouth shut. But I wanted someone to talk to."

Maya was ten when her mother, Famy, summoned her to their chamber. When Maya arrived with her maids, Famy embraced her and asked, "You look sad, daughter. Is something bothering you?"

Maya lowered her head and murmured, "Liv doesn’t want to play with me anymore. I heard her saying mean things behind my back."

Famy nodded, gently patting Maya. "True friendships are hard to find and even harder to keep. But you don’t need her. I’m here for you, and so are your father and younger brother."

Maya nodded and rested her head on Famy’s lap. Famy stroked her hair and continued, "As the daughter of a king, many will want things from you. You must be cautious about whom you trust. Remember, our kingdom comes first."

"I just wanted someone to talk to… no, I never needed anyone. I was fine in my small, dark corner where I was happy and comfortable. Yes, I was."

As the war began to turn in favour of the humans, the demons, devils, and dragons sought any means necessary to win. King Taffer convened an urgent meeting, as humans and elves had breached the demon borders—north with the Renolva and east with the Elven kingdom. Reports indicated that, while many lives were lost on the human side, the elves had not targeted civilians.

At this tense gathering, Famy and Divitry, along with Taffer and his wife Sina, Queen Gika Levin, and King Malachar, discussed their next moves with their generals.

Outside, children played. Kunvy ran around with Ditry, Maya's younger brother. Jane and Monroe, a bit older, joined in, while Lilithra sat alone by a tree, reading a book on magic, her fingers tracing imaginary spells with a smile.

Nearby, Nearf played with the devil prince, and Mahin tossed stones with the second devil prince. Jasmine lay asleep under a tree as Fenris gently patted her head. By the lake, Aurelius and Maelisandra talked, smiling and holding hands, while Serathis and Cronix sat in silence, gazing out over the water.

"I remember that day. It was the first time… yes, I remember."

Maya looked at all the children and thought to herself, *Don’t play with them, Maya. They’ll speak ill of you. Just stay quiet until Mother returns.*

She sat in her chair, watching when a child approached and sat beside her. Maya glanced over to see Yoranios beside her, watching the others with a gentle smile. She quickly looked away.

Yoranios looked over at Maya and asked, "Why are you frowning? Did someone upset you?"

Maya shot him an annoyed look before replying, "No, I'm fine, thank you."

Yoranios nodded. "Of course. When you feel better, we can play."

Maya didn’t respond, keeping silent. Then, Yoranios walked closer, took her hand, and said, "I think it’s time to feel better."

Maya looked at him, then turned away. "I’m fine right here."

With a playful smile, Yoranios held her hand tighter and began to run, pulling her along with him. Maya, clearly annoyed, was dragged along as Yoranios shouted to the others, "We can play now! Let’s split into teams!"

"I’m with Maya! She’s a dragon!" one child called.

"No, I’ll be with her! She can sniff out the other team, and victory will be mine!" shouted another.

"Cronix, you shouldn't have said that!"

"Maya is with me!"

Meanwhile, back at the meeting, Taffer announced, "I have a plan."

All the leaders turned to him, except Sina, who closed her eyes as Taffer’s red gaze grew fierce with conviction. His voice carried an intensity that filled the room. "I will raise my children to be monsters! I will create the modern-day Karaban Vesyoni!"

The room fell silent as the leaders stared at him. Gika finally spoke, "Have you lost your mind, Taffer? There will never be another Karaban. That monster was beyond anyone's league. You can’t just recreate him."

Taffer’s mind drifted to memories of flames, death, blood, and the corpse-strewn battlefields left by Karaban Vesyoni—a demon king who had terrorized his enemies and relished in destruction. Few had ever seen his face, save for his closest allies and the unfortunate foes who perished before him.

"If it saves our people, I’ll do it," Taffer replied. "No one believed that demons and devils could unite, and yet, here you are—Malachar and Gika, in my castle with your children playing outside."

Divitry interjected, "If one of your children turns into such a monster, there will be no peace. You, of all people, know how bloodthirsty Karaban was."

"It won’t," Taffer replied. "I’ll die fighting before another king like Karaban rises. But right now, we need warriors like him, and my children will become those warriors. However, I need a blood contract from each of you."

The leaders exchanged glances as Taffer continued, "If I die, you must ensure that whoever tries to become the next Karaban Vesyoni is put to death."

Outside, Maya and the other children played, their laughter echoing as night fell. When the dinner hour came, Maya and Yoranios sat together, while the others waited eagerly to eat outside.

Maya turned to Yoranios and said, "I’m Maya, by the way."

He looked at her, amused. "I already know that..."

He noticed her faint smile, and with a grin, replied, "Nice to meet you, Maya. My name is Yoranios."

Maya squeezed his hand, smiling, *yet… I couldn’t say those words—those simple words, "I want to be your friend." I held back. Was it fear, foolishness, or just the mind of a young girl? Soon after, he disappeared… they all disappeared.*

The next morning, Maya waved goodbye to the other children as she climbed into the carriage with her mother, father, and younger brother. She looked out the window, smiling at Yoranios and the others as they waved until she vanished with the magical teleportation.

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Afterwards, Maelisandra bid farewell as her brothers joined Malachar and Gika, preparing to depart. Aurelius paused, glancing back before stepping into the carriage. King Malachar looked at him and said, "You want to come with us? I’m afraid you’ll need to stay here."

Aurelius shook his head, replying, "I know, sir! I just..."

His cheeks flushed as he approached Maelisandra and kissed her hand, declaring, "When I grow up, you’ll be my wife!"

Gika laughed as Yoranios and the others stared in surprise. Malachar smiled quietly, watching.

Maelisandra blushed, then kissed Aurelius on the cheek, prompting gasps and cheers from everyone. She smiled and said, "I’ll wait for you!"

Too shocked to respond, Aurelius stumbled outside the carriage, holding his cheek as Jane and Lilithra shook him, laughing, trying to snap him out of his daze.

"After that, I heard about what Taffer did; they were thrown into that pit, and monsters emerged from it. The Gyovani siblings went to war and won. When I saw Yoranios again, I bowed—he was no longer the child I’d briefly known, and later, I saw him at that party as well.

"Why do I remember all of this? I hardly knew those people, and I'm not looking for Yoranios anymore. So why do I want to see him? Is it just to meet that kid again? To ask him something? I don’t know. I’ll be visiting the capital to expand my business, and whether I meet him along the way or not, I have work to attend to."

The next morning in Erhügel, a city in eastern Renolva known for its herbal remedies, people from distant places arrived, especially those with chronic illnesses or long-term conditions, seeking the city's renowned herbal resources.

A small academy there also trained herbalists, who were seen as healers or doctors in a world full of mysterious illnesses and symptoms.

Maya climbed onto her cart and gave the horse a gentle but firm nudge to get moving. She had visited many herbalist students and managed to convince some to visit the dragon kingdom, where their expertise would earn them both profit and reputation.

After paying her exit fee, Maya left the city and headed north toward the capital, where she’d been invited to the merchants' guild annual party.

While travelling, some found the cart’s noises annoying and its movement bothersome, but for many merchants—Maya included—the sounds were oddly comforting.

She stared at the book, thinking, "This is a big kingdom. There's no chance I'll see him—he might have already left for another one. He could be in Arguand or the ice kingdom in the north, Eisengrund or Dornwald in the east, Sand Land or the flower kingdom in the southwest, or even in the sorcerers' kingdom to the northwest."

She held a book in her hands, reading until she paused again. *Even if I do see him, what would I say? It’s not like I’ll actually meet him, but what do people say in these situations? ‘Hello, long time no see?’ No, no… he’s a demon king. ‘Greetings, Yoranios Gyova...’ No, that’s too long and formal. ‘Hello, Yoranios, miss me?’ No, that…*

Meanwhile, in the demon kingdom, even after five months of relentless work, the southern city of Clovendell was still far from finished. Dwarves and demons worked tirelessly to rebuild it. Despite the challenges, life went on.

Refugees who’d relocated to other cities were given jobs to sustain themselves, as the kingdom struggled with the aftermath of the witches’ attack. Many big merchants had left, creating a new set of problems.

Additionally, farmers had lost fields, merchants had seen their shops destroyed, and many had lost their lands.

Jane and her consort were doing what they could, but to keep the kingdom’s finances stable in the long term, they needed more. The kingdom was in a precarious place.

On the day of the meeting, Jane and Kunvy, along with Lilithra, Jasmine, and several of the kingdom’s brightest minds, gathered to find solutions. The people needed work and housing, but the kingdom couldn’t provide them without money—a resource that had been diminished by the witches’ destructive attack.

The meeting lasted hours; some left exhausted, while most stayed, aware of the kingdom's urgent need. Throughout, everyone shared their thoughts and ideas—except for Queen Jane, who listened intently, each suggestion turning over in her mind.

After half a day, Jane stood, and silence filled the room as everyone waited for her to speak.

She looked around and said, “Right now, there’s no way to attract investors without creating a financially appealing environment. For that, we need people working and a profitable economy—but at the moment, we don’t have the funds to make that happen.”

The group nodded as Jane turned to face her throne, pausing a moment to gather herself. She then turned to the finance professors and asked, “How much do we need—in terms of both money and time?”

Professor Sam, the head of the demon university in the capital, nodded, glancing down at his notes. “Time-wise, ideally by the new year, so we start the financial year strong and draw new investors."

"As for money," he continued with a sigh, "we need four million gold coins to get out of this situation.”

Jane nodded, glancing at Lilithra and Kunvy before saying, “I have a way to raise that without touching our reserves.”

Professor Sam and a group of financiers glanced at Jane, murmuring among themselves. Then, Professor Sam stood up and asked, "My queen... if I may ask, where did you come across this..."

"That will be all," Queen Jane commanded, and Lilithra, Kunvy, and everyone else in the room bowed as she left, with Lilithra and Kunvy following closely behind. While Jasmine stayed to further discuss the remaining matters that needed solving.

As Jane entered her chamber, Kunvy and Lilithra sat beside her. Holding two papers, Jane said, "I’ve officially confiscated Yoranios and Monroe’s lands, along with their extra properties and investments—they now belong to the kingdom."

Lilithra read over the documents while Kunvy looked concerned. "Did you ask them for permission? Those were acquired with their personal funds, not the kingdom’s treasury."

"I didn’t, and I won’t," Jane replied. "I'll send Monroe a formal notice, while I will contact Yoranios. The kingdom needs funds now, and I won’t overlook any source that can help. We’ll weather this storm, and my people will thrive."

In Rahm, one of Renolva’s largest cities near the border with the Elven kingdom, the land was known for one thing above all: its beasts. From ferocious monsters and dragons to savage ghouls and monstrous witches, this was a dangerous region.

While the threat loomed outside the city’s great walls, inside, Rahm thrived as a financial centre. Blacksmithing was the city’s oldest and most famous craft. Three hundred years ago, Rahm had been the primary supplier of swords and shields for the war against the demons, and even now, the demand for weaponry remained high, especially for adventurers.

The Adventurers’ Guild in Rahm was the largest in the entire kingdom, a well-funded and respected organization. Next door, though of slightly lesser standing, was the Sorcerers’ Guild. However, no matter the age, the need for healers and doctors never changed.

At the Adventurers’ Guild reception, a cat-woman was busy organizing papers, focused on her work while her tail held a pencil. After assisting a steady flow of adventurers, it was noon, and she was contentedly seated at her desk when a nun approached. The cat-woman adjusted her posture and greeted, “How can I help you…?”

She froze in surprise when she recognized Eyva. Jumping up, she bounded over to Eyva, who embraced her warmly. Eyva smiled, patting her head. “I missed you, Fon! I missed my kitty sister.”

Fon stepped back, smiling brightly. “I missed you too! It’s been so long. Where have you been? What happened? Tell me everything!”

Eyva chuckled, “Let’s meet up with the family first, then we can catch up, sister.”

“Of course!” Fon agreed enthusiastically. “I have work, but as soon as I’m done…” She trailed off as an adventurer approached her desk, waiting. She glanced at Eyva and said, “Wait for me until the end of my shift! Don’t go anywhere—I’m showing you around the city!”

Eyva smiled. “It hasn’t even changed that much…”

Fon interrupted, "I don’t care!"

Her cat ears twitched wildly as she leapt to her desk. Eyva smiled and headed to an empty seat to relax, then glanced at the adventurer who was speaking to Fon in brief, quiet words.

He had short white hair, a handsome face, and wore rogue-like black armour suited for quick manoeuvres. Three daggers dangled from his belt, while a short sword rested on his back. Curious, Eyva stood up to get a better look at his face, just as Fon asked, "And the name, sir?"

The adventurer replied, "Fenris."

"No family name? Ah, found you, Fenris. You completed the mission; wait a moment to get a seal from the guildmaster—and, of course, your reward."

Fon then noticed Eyva watching Fenris and asked, "Sister?"

Eyva continued to look at Fenris, who returned her gaze. They shared a moment of silence until he asked, "Can I help you?"

Snapping back to reality, Eyva nodded. "Sorry to bother you... I once saved an adventurer years ago when I was one myself. Could that have been you?"

Fenris looked at her, hesitating for a moment before recognition dawned in his eyes. "Eyva?"

Eyva smiled, her face reddening as he continued to watch her with his usual calm, steady expression. "You look as beautiful as I remember."