I rub the side of my face while chuckling lightly, It's not sore anymore but the memory is fresh.

The son and daughter of the older noble who struck me sit across from me, shooting me apologetic and awkward glances. I mean they really do feel bad, minute one in a new country and already they had disrespected someone who is quite high on the social ladder. I'm not mad or even frustrated anymore especially how the situation ended.

I didn't even have time after the slap to feel offended, despite my rather low opinion of Karl anymore, he is quite the bro. Immediately he was in the face of the older nobleman and was dressing the man down. The man of course showed respect for the son of the Donnerstein, recognizing the boy from previous international meetings. Karl, after letting the man know he had gravely offended his hosts, tells him,

"That 'Slave' as you put it, is the male heir to the Hasslerouge family! Despite being a Frontiersman he was brought into one of our highest families initially as a consort due to strange family tradition, now, after all, he has done, he is the true heir, and is part of the Hero's party, and not just a part, but is an incredibly important leader within!

So you not only offended the kingdom as a whole, you offended one of the highest respected individuals in the kingdom despite his... lower start."

I couldn't even react in time. That had caught me off guard, to the point where I started laughing at how strange that felt. Someone defending me? Never thought I'd see the day. I watched the eyes of the offender go wide and he immediately fell to a knee in apology. I remember his whole body shaking in fear as he stammered out,

"I-I am sorry Young Hasslerouge... I know of your exploits... I am sorry I didn't know you would be... different like this."

I couldn't even respond, I just laughed harder, hell I heard Blake fighting back sniggers at the situation. After a few moments, I calmed down enough to actually respond. I said to the man,

"Get up. No hard feelings. Just don't do it again please!"

He stood up and thanked me profusely before hurrying away embarrassed, but I do remember the look I got from some of the other refugee nobles. They glared at me, angry I guess at me being a slave who holds high station, instead of being mad I couldn't help but laugh at this too. Not a big laugh that would put my sanity into question, it was a quiet but genuine laugh.

Now here I am, an hour later on a small flying ship in a cabin with the two kids of the man who hit me. They haven't spoken to me the entire time, either embarrassed or too respectful to open their mouths. I mean I had been going through financial documents the whole flight... or voyage... whatever it should be called. It must feel strange to them, watching me read a hand-tall stack of paper written in both the Song of Diplomacy Frontiersman language and the language of the kingdom. Not only this, but I had created a spreadsheet system similar to Microsoft Excel on many papers to organize things in a way I understand better, Also it keeps everything organized and easier to copy down into more copies. It probably looks borderline schizophrenic to the noble children who have never done a day of work aside from training.

Overall, business is booming. With the recent acquisition of funds, definitely not stolen from the operating budget of the hero's party, I managed to fund an expansion of my spice trade. Now I have begun saturating the sugar market along with a few other spices or seasonings. In fact, I've begun selling what is effectively season-all salt. This is all done massively under-market, and without tariffs or taxes, I still operate in the green. Soon, most other merchants will either have to change markets or go broke. Then I can hike prices and make an utter killing. An asshole move, but since it's mostly nobles who buy spices, I feel rather neutral on the whole situation.

The only major cost at the moment is the chartering of flying ships to transport my goods. I have plans to get a small fleet of these ships, but the finances aren't there yet, I'll eventually get some built for personal gain. Considering the refugees include a family of historical master shipbuilders, maybe I can strike a good deal for their services...

Regardless the ship is about to dock at the academy Flying Island.

Per usual the ship docks with a teeth-rattling crash that no one but me and the other Frontiersmen seem to notice. I guess it's just a part of the experience. I put my papers back into my bag, nod to the nervous nobles, and leave the cabin. I want to get off this ship and make it down to the workshop or drydock or whatever it is that the king granted to me.

They seem to want to say something, but I just pass them by. I did some research and asked around, their family is of lesser nobility and aside from buying shit from me or my company, I have no use for them, yet.

I leave the busy dock, knowing all my luggage, aka my weapons and armor, will be brought to the villa. I step into the sun and take a good look at the campus before me. I don't notice anything of note. I walk around the island and find where the old ballroom was located. There is no longer a massive hole in the island left from my actions, instead, there is a massive wood and stone building. I would describe it as a hangar built out of medieval and Renaissance materials.

There is a large stone in front in memory of those lost during the attack by "the demon kings forces". I feel a small pang of guilt but swallow it and approach the large wooden doors. A note is nailed to the door, it reads,

"This building is to be set aside for Isa Hasslerouge and his underlings in order to help further protect the kingdom."

I frown and take the note off the door. He doesn't know, so this probably feels like justice, a Phoenix rising from the ashes to an extent. I find it... sad. I enter the doors and find exactly what I expected, a gargantuan hangar with a pair of huge doors on the other side. The building is about 80 yards long and 20 wide. There are multiple side rooms varying from warehouses to undetermined rooms. It looks very similar to what I remember as a drydock.

I inspect the whole place and find it adequate, I will simply have to bring in equipment and men to get things done.

I leave and head to the villa. I am quite tired and would rather enjoy a period of rest and probably something to eat. Godiva and the others are showing up later than me because the academy doesn't go into session for another day or so. I just came early to get things set up. I have some ideas I want to try considering I can dig as deep as I need to into the treasury of the kingdom. I have no deadlines, no constraints, and no minimum requirements. I will absolutely create something... extreme.

Once I reach the villa I sit down at the desk in my room and begin writing a list of orders. While not exact numbers, they are simple demands. Such as having a foundry and smithy built inside the big building as well as some other supplies needed for craftsmanship.

I am pulled from my work by a light tapping on my wide open door. I look up to see someone I haven't in a hot minute. Its fucking Zandra and Zindri. I smile when I see them and warmly greet them. They both appear quite happy to see me again. I get up and wrap them both up in a giant bear hug. I'm still not entirely sure how I feel about these two, but it felt right.

Zanda per usual showed little emotion Zindri pulled in closer for some reason. After I released them we did some catching up. Zandra explained she simply studied and furthered her training. Very professional. Zindri couldn't stop talking and most of it was unimportant noblewoman and girl stuff. Parties, meetings, and shopping it sounds like. The most annoying part was how she beamed over my exploits, she is surprisingly well-informed about the things I did. She begins to ask about my experiences in order to gain more insight when Zandra reminds her,

"Zindri. Our older sisters are coming. We came to get him."

She calms down and nods in agreement. Zindri grabs my wrist and half-pulls me to the dining table. I take a seat and lean back. I can smell the servants cooking something in the kitchen. I now realise Mekare is nowhere to be seen which helps me relax just a little bit more. I have a big dumb grin on my face as I wait for whatever I am waiting for.

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

Through they door comes both Violet and Zeyra. Violet gives me a cocky smile as she takes a seat at the table. Zeyra gives me a polite smile but her eyes are harsh, almost accusatory. Zeyra takes the far head of the table away from me. Zindri and Zandra take seats and gree their sisters as Zeyra and I hold eye contact. We hold a silent conversation, no words spoken, but our eyes do the talking.

She is rather angry or frustrated with me. While she has never been kindly or sisterly to me, she has been polite. I had always seen within her eyes some manner of contempt, now she is quite... fed up with me. I simply tried to convey that I am truly not acting against her, and most of all, we can talk about this later, not at the table.

I think she got the message as she broke eye contact and began speaking to her younger two full-sisters. Violet turns to me and exclaims,

"Damn, you got yourself a dragon under your belt! I heard from some of the royal knights, who survived the encounter, that after everything seemed lost you just kinda, won. They said you broke past all limits and expectations, you moved in a way no mortal should."

I give a low laugh and reply,

"Oh, it was simply a really strong reaction to fear. I mean my other option was dying so I chose to not die."

Violet laughs and slaps me on the back which pushes my guts into the edge of the table. I make an awful noise as the wind is knocked from my lungs but I recover quickly. Violet gets quiet for a moment and her face gets sober, but before she can speak dinner is brought to the table.

We eat and catch up, Zindri tries to at one point slyly move close to me, but it is noticed by Violet who gives her hell for it. Zeyra glares at her sister for this though which is odd. I don't think our conversation will be civil, especially at the rate Zeyra is drinking wine. I counted ten or more full glasses of the red liquid.

When dessert is brought out I notice the sugar container has my company's logo on it. It's good to know my brand has made its way into the Hasslerouge inventory. We eat up and I am left overly full. The two younger sisters head to bed, Zindri having too much to drink mixed with the good food, nearly working like a tranquilizer. Zandra simply wanted to prepare for school. Zeyra and I leave Violet asleep at the table and go to the backyard.

I get us both a chair and we sit across from one another on the porch. In the darkening sky, her face is hard to see, but her expression is sharp, I do notice some form of sadness within that expression. I then say in a quiet voice,

"Something has set you off against me. Tell me what it is so that I may mend our relationship."

Like I said, we were never friends and didn't know one another long enough, but something is boiling inside of her and I don't want it to boil over into something terrible. This statement sets her off,

"Relationship? Which one do you mean? The one where Father simply brought you into our home and told us to play nice? or the long time we've known each other, oh wait, that's right, we don't know one another at all! I am expected to not only treat you like family, but also I'd have to... fucking marry you if I want to inherit the Hasslerouge title? It's bullshit."

I frown and nod. She makes a pretty good point. I'd be pissed too, traditions like that are stupid. I don't give a damn about the man or woman shit, but having to bring in an outsider in order for inheritance to happen is a really stupid idea. I then reply,

"I think I get i-"

I can't finish my sentence as I am forced to roll off of my chair and into the grass behind me as a stream of fire bursts from her hand. She then raises her voice,

"You don't get it! You are a fucking slave who was elevated! What do you know about inheritance rules? What do you know about stupid manners having to act a certain way even if it makes you sick?"

I roll to my feet and quietly say,

"Alright... so it's like that."

She steps onto the grass and begins building more flames around her. I keep low and move quickly as I get closer. She continues to monologue,

"Violet didn't want the title! She didn't want all the honors. I worked beyond my station! I am one of the greatest in the kingdom! I deserve the seat of power and some little Outcast is brought in! Slave to duke, all on the whims of an old paranoid man."

I drop to my belly as another fire attack roars over my head. I feel my hair burn a little and something smells like bacon. I roll sideways and use the momentum to get back onto my feet. She then shouts at me,

"How is it fair that you made it this far? How can you be this close to the royal family, and have so many connections? How are you this worthy of the Dukes' title? How have you become greater than me?"

I then make contact. I go to grab ahold of her, but as I bend down to trip her at the knee she sends her leg up and her kneecap smashes into my nose. I feel a small crack, but it's not broken. I let out a groan of pain as I catch her ankle as she tries to lower her leg from the attack. With a surprisingly brutal punch, I let go as her fist made contact with my face. She then speaks again,

"It's not fair... you can gain all of this with no work... and no suffering..."

Suddenly she finds herself no longer on the ground as I wrap both of her legs in my arms and lift. I drive up from my knees and torque my body to the side, slamming her into the ground with my shoulder firmly in her gut. She lets out a shocked noise as I scoot up her body and sit on her hips, my legs laced over hers with the tops of my feet firmly locking her knees. I sit on her and in a low and aggressive voice explain to her,

"I suffered... more than you can ever imagine in your cushy little noble life.

I had my own fucking humanity questioned, I found the bottom of the human psyche and dug deeper into that despair! I only have what I do now due to hard work and only a small fraction of making my own luck. Perfect placement, perfect timing, and lots of planning. I have seen and done things to get where I am now that would make you puke...and I have."

She punches upward and I pull my head back so she can't reach my face. She then responds,

"Then what of your freedom now? Was it planning for my father to bring you in?"

I grab her wrists in an iron grip and my face contorts in anger, not at her, but at something I have come to terms with. I then say in a sharp voice, strangely quiet for how I feel now,

"I am a slave. I have never been free. Your father, my master owns my destiny. A shackle of iron, gold, or lace, none of it matters, they are still shackles. You think I act upon my own orders, and follow my own path, I don't. I am given only the freedom to find the means to an end goal, but I cannot choose what that goal is. My every action is tracked and if my mind could be always read it would be.

Do you think marrying any of you girls would free me? No, even as a Duke, consort, or whatever you would call me I would be a slave. To your father until his death and to my "wife" after that event. If I disobey I die, marked as some sort of monster or traitor. If I go to the royal family and ask for refuge, a slave I will remain.

If you are jealous of my current situation, then you can take my place. Have the church, the duke, and the royals all watching your every move, only given the freedom to further their own goals or satisfy their needs.

I don't want a title.

I want to be free."

I sit on top of her for a moment as I calm down. I realize I was white-knuckling her wrists and let go with a quiet apology as she stared up at me with disbelief but she is smart and slowly her mind wraps around my outburst. She lowers her hands after a moment and she quietly speaks,

"I didn't know. I didn't even think of it that way."

I remove myself from on top of her and roll onto my back next to her. I then reply calmly,

"Yeah... I understand why you are frustrated. You worked hard and for nothing. If you didn't look deeper at my situation you'd absolutely come to the conclusion I am just lucky. "

She then says,

"I don't think either of us can control our destiny."

I laugh and reply,

"No... just me. Any of you girls are capable of just declaring we are getting married. It's really always been your choice, not mine. I mean I am allowed to try and dissuade you and even outright refuse, but in the end... It's any of your choices. I think I managed to convince you all Duke Hasslerouge gave me a choice, and I think I convinced myself too."

She stays quiet for a moment before replying,

"That's...bullshit."

I nod without speaking and say unenthusiastically,

"Wanna get married? You are, as far as I am concerned the most qualified sister... who wants to take the title... plus are not a child."

This makes her genuinely laugh, I won't lie. It's quite beautiful, but she responds,

"Fuck... my self-worth or my ambitions. Which do I choose?"

We both share a laugh and then she asks,

"What do you want as your wedding gift 'Darling'?"

I nearly puke from laughter at this, as does she. The last word came out so sarcastic and forced that the word damn near didn't make sense. It felt strange and alien. then she states,

"Yeah. I'll take your hand, but only for the title."

I nod and then ask,

"What's the church's opinion on uhh divorce?"

She snorts and answers,

"Yeah, no, not happening, but also marriage isn't as binding as many other cultures, especially for nobility. I mean father has a few wives, polygamy is more than okay, and even between two households, if both households agree. So you could marry another noblewoman and we would "share", but since it's me, you are all theirs, not mine."

I exhale sharply amused by the idea. I then tell her,

"Alright... let's get hitched, bitch. Nothing is binding, and we expect nothing from one another. It is purely business."

She nods and then asks,

"Now what is it you want from me?"

I then make my demand,

"Well... I don't need anything for now, but I can take a favor."

She nods and stands up before saying,

"Well... our lives are about to get busy. Time for bed."

I remain lying on the ground a pit growing in my gut as I am immediately regretting my choices, but one day for a wedding, and the whole problem goes away. Morally, this is absolutely fucked, especially if I actually meet someone I want to spend my life with, but this takes away the whole issue of being required to marry one of the Hasslerouge girls.

As a response to this stress and regret, I go inside and crack open one of the kegs of beer I had brought to the villa and drown all worries in dark brown glory...