“I see.” Rexir said with a grin. He was currently sitting on his throne looking down at Hazeel, Vanessa, and I. “So Divine Blacksmith Shar has given you a task to complete in his stead. Do I have everything correct so far?”

“It’s as you’ve said. Right now we just need information on where the dragon is. After that, we’ll head off as soon as we make preparations.” I was kneeling in front of Rexir, and making it a point to be extra respectful, but that wasn’t where my true focus was.

No, I was more concerned with the way that Rexir was staring at Vanessa. There was no doubt in my mind that Leresa had relayed the information of my sword’s transformation into a woman to Rexir.

I trusted the man, of course, I had more than enough reason to after how often he helped me. However, I couldn’t help but feel nervous that he was putting so much of his gaze on Vanessa, who, for her part, didn’t seem uncomfortable in the least.

“Alright, we will provide the location of the dragon for you. As it turns out, we’ve been tracking the beast for a year, after it ate the last Gold Continent Hero.” His face frowned, and he sighed.

“I’m sorry about that. Were you a one of the Hero's friends?” I asked, and Rexir frowned at me, his foot tapping against the floor in agitation.

“Gods above, no. That man was a piece of trash. Honestly the lowest of the low. He used his accomplishments as an excuse to pressure people into doing whatever he wanted. I’m just sad that when we lost him, we lost one of the Heroes Weapons at the same time.”

I nodded, but Rexir wasn’t finished yet. “In return, I need you all to do something for me. Think of this as repayment for an extra favor on top of what I’ve already done for you and your friends.”

I nodded again, but this time, much more slowly. “That depends on what it is that you want, Mr. Minami.” I said as I stood up.

The princeling shot me a smile, and stood up himself. He walked down his throne’s steps, and came to a stop in front of me. “Well, what I really want is two things. First, I would like to take sword lessons from you.”

I recoiled at the unexpected answer, and said, “With all due respect, Rexir, your money and connections should offer you the opportunity to learn from far better teachers than I. Why don’t you go and ask a Sword Divinity, or something like that?”

“Hey!” Leresa shouted at me. “Don’t have that attitude towards his Majesty, the prince!” I shot her a glare, and she returned one right back. Despite the fact that I thought we had grown closer, it seems that acting out of turn was still a sore spot for her.

“Don’t you dare keep standing like that! Kneel while addressing Rexir in his throne room!” She shouted, but Rexir waved a hand at her.

“Leave it be. He’s a cautious man, you can’t fault him for his nature. It did save the Azure Kingdom, after all.” The prince took my rudeness in stride. Leaning in close, he said, “The truth is, I need very specific sword lessons, as it ties into my previous request. That, and I know for a fact that you are the only person with this skill set among the people I am acquainted with.”

“Please get to the point. You’re making him worried by how much you’re leering at me, you know?” Vanessa spoke candidly, and for a moment, the entire room was silent.

Suddenly, Rexir burst out laughing, and Leresa strode up to the princeling, pinching his cheek hard.

“So that’s what you wanted!? Is the amount of women who serve you still not enough!? You lecherous prince!” Leresa was fuming, and Rexir quickly lost his smile due to the pain.

“Ow, ow, ow! No, I don’t want Vanessa! How rude would it be of me to conquer the woman of a friend, Leresa?”

“Assuming you could, in the first place. The cocky, know-it-all type isn’t really anything I would ever go for.” Vanessa said, and a seed of relief was planted in my heart. Despite being exposed to different circumstances than she had in reality, she was still the same person I had met back on the front lines.

Rexir nodded after managing to fight back Leresa’s pinches of death. “Exactly. I have no illusions about who it is you fancy.” I smiled at the subsequent blush that overcame her face.

“Anyway, back to the topic at hand.” Rexir said, and pointed to Leresa. “I would like you to perform whatever ritual turned Vanessa into a blade on Less here.”

“You what!?” Leresa squeaked, but in contrast to that, I felt a wave of relief come over me.

“I’m guessing you had the room I was staying at being observed?” I asked, and he shrugged, the everpresent grin still on his face.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

“By some people with some very potent long-range scouting magic. I couldn’t afford to break the trust of a diplomat so easily. No offense.” He played it off cool, but there was a tinge of fear in his voice.

“None taken.” I replied, giving him a smile of my own. “I would have done the exact same thing if I was in your shoes. Of course I could perform the ritual. When-”

I was pulled off to the side by Vanessa, who was seething mad at me. “Don’t you dare! Don’t give away my family’s secrets as if they were nothing!”

I stood, stunned, and hugged her by reflex. She resisted, and I fought the urge to keep holding onto her. I let go, and she scrambled away from me, her breathing ragged.

I chewed my lip and looked at the floor. “Sorry Vanessa, that was reflexive. I forgot that you wouldn’t know about this. After we became partners and performed the ritual back in the states, General Armando approached you about incorporating it into the military to fight the Dimension Eaters.”

“You warned him of the risks, but he was persistent. So, your father gave his permission for them to film the ritual, and now they’re using their own version of it for very important soldiers. There are two more… well, I guess now one more pair like us back home. Two women named Alison and Maria.”

Vanessa seemed to have regained her temper, and just stood quietly after giving me a nod. It worried me a bit, but I didn’t want to ruin another meeting with a powerful entity just because of my admittedly ‘unwarranted,’ fears about Vanessa.

“Anyway, back to business. It sounds like you haven’t talked it through with Leresa yet. Am I correct about that?” Rexir looked back to Leresa, who seemed to have been placated in the meantime.

“No, but I think it is for the best for all of us.” He looked around the room and spoke loudly, “Everyone, leave, now! Leresa, stay.”

He looked at me. “You stay as well, please.” I nodded, and he looked to the women behind me as well.

My eyes widened as I had forgotten Hazeel had even accompanied us to the meeting. I turned to the wood elf, who had been unusually quiet during our talks.

“Hazeel, are you feeling alright? Should I bring you back to the inn, for now?” She looked up at me in mild surprise, and shook her head, sending waves of her silver hair in every direction.

“No, please don’t. I- I was just thinking about things. That’s all.” I thought about pressing further, but this was neither the time nor the place to have a heart-to-heart with Hazeel.

Apparently the wood elf didn’t think the same, because immediately after I turned to face Rexir, she caressed my back and put her head on my shoulder. “Leo, I was thinking… could you perform that ritual on me as well?”

Vanessa’s jaw dropped, and I had to imagine that my expression mirrored her own. “Are you sure, Hazeel? It’s going to take a lot out of you, and I will never be able to undo it. We’ll be attached for as long as we live, and I’ll be able to feel your presence at all times. Are you comfortable with that?”

Hazeel grinned, and planted a quick kiss on my cheek. “Of course. You say those things, but act as if I didn’t already have a slave’s crest on me.”

“To be honest with you, Hazeel, I completely forgot about it until you mentioned it.” She grinned and squeezed my torso tightly.

“I want to have that special connection with you that Vanessa has. I want to be useful to you, and share a bond which can never be broken. One which you would fight your way through an endless onslaught to preserve.”

She let go, and I wondered. I don’t think she would have a problem admitting as much in private, but I had to think that she was jealous of the resolve I had to keep searching for Vanessa, even after I had lost my memory and landed in an unfamiliar world.

“Ok.” I finally answered. “I’ve never performed the ritual on myself before, so that will take a bit of adjusting to, but other than that it should be fine.”

“I can help with it. Just relax and leave your ritual to me.” Vanessa offered weakly, but I smiled and shook my head.

“We both know that at the time period your mind is in right now, you still have trouble remembering the difference between certain symbols.” She frowned, but said nothing more on the subject.

I heard a loud cough to my right, and looked over to see Rexir with a hand over his mouth. “I’m terribly sorry for ruining your romantic moment, but would you mind explaining the list of benefits, as well as the risks? It seems that Less won’t be convinced unless she hears everything from a person who has been through the procedure once already.”

“Of course. First, the benefits: among other things, you share a mental connection with your partner that allows for telecommunication, and to converse with them when they are in their weapon form. You’ll also be able to tell their general direction at all times.”

“That sounds handy.” Leresa chimed in. “I’ll be able to tell whether he’s cheating on me or slacking off at any given time.”

Rexir sighed, and I added, “It won’t provide that level of clarity, just a general direction and a link to their emotions.”

This time, Rexir said, “That’s good. Maybe with that, I can finally convince Less that the only woman for me is her, and I can get rid of all this concubine talk.”

My eyes widened, “Wait, so you aren’t married to them all yet?”

“No, in fact, if I had it my way, they wouldn’t even be living in the castle. Technically, Less is the person I am engaged to, but we are only to be wed once I ascend the throne. The rest of those around us are women that the nobles of the Gold Continent and surrounding lands sent to try to steal my heart from under Less’ nose.”

Leresa blushed and said, “You say that like you hate having women take care of your every whim.”

“I can’t say that I hate it, but when it frustrates my most beloved to the point of tears, I have to step up and say something about it, as someone who loves her just as much. I couldn’t even begin to imagine that I’d act even half as rationally as you do if you were being waited on by a bunch of men.”

Leresa took a deep breath, and turned her attention from Rexir to myself. “Please continue with the negatives. Do you have any way to test our aptitude, by the way?”

I smiled. “Of course! Do you happen to have a dungeon in the castle?”