Apparently it was theoretically possible for demons and humans to have children together. But I wasn’t aware of a single example in the demonic kingdom. It was remarkably difficult to get pregnant that way, but more than that...
“No one will permit the existence of a demon with weak human blood.”
The moment the child was discovered, they’d be disposed of. In the worst-case scenario, the mother would meet the same fate. When I had first received Layla, Prati and the others around me had similar concerns of what might happen if I forced myself on her. That concern could at least be alleviated by the fact Layla regularly returned to dragon form, but in Libidine’s case...
“And besides, it’s not like she will have an easy time getting pregnant if you stay as you are. But if you were to take human form as well, that would change things.”
Getting pregnant wouldn’t be much of a challenge in that case, but Libidine would be defenseless for nine months. How would he protect her until the baby was born? How would they raise the child?
“So...that’s your gambit.” Daiagias looked out over the city. A city full to the brim with humans and beastfolk. Now he got it. “This is the only place in the entire kingdom where humans can live freely.” His kid would fit in here and everyone else would be none the wiser.
“Since we’re so far from the castle, most of the officials working in the autonomous zone are under my control. And they know how to keep their mouths shut. With the help of my men, your secret will be perfectly safe.” My private soldiers weren’t ordinary night elves, they were trueborn elites. “You met Tavo earlier. The rest of my officials here are just as competent as him. The autonomous zone’s operations will run smoothly without you really needing to lift a finger. All you have to do is hold the reins, and the autonomous zone will keep stable.”
Daiagias listened in silence.
“And besides, my exile is only for a year. But once that year is up, there’s no guarantee I’ll be back immediately after it ends. In fact, I might never return at all. That should give you more than enough time to give this castle your personal touch and make it your own.”
What do you think? Pretty good terms, no? Never mind the demonic kingdom, you won’t find a better place in the entire continent.
“So, please. Will you consider serving as governor?”
Daiagias didn’t even blink as he gave me an intense stare.
“Daia...I...” Libidine reluctantly spoke up. “I don’t want to cause you—”
Before she could finish her sentence, Daiagias embraced her in a hug. Oh. Not just a hug. That was a pretty passionate kiss.
I mean...wow. Huh. Like, I don’t mind the passion all that much, but...do they really need those pink clouds all around them?
For a moment, those two were lost in their own world. Even Layla was taken aback, covering her mouth with a gasp. No...wait. She was shooting a glance at me. There was a certain heavy look in her eyes. It seemed really serious...
Come on! How am I supposed to ride Layla after all this?!
“Libidine.” Paying the rest of us no mind, Daiagias finally pulled back from his long kiss. “Will you please bear my child?”
“Of course!”
A fresh look of resolve covered Daiagias’s face as he turned to me. “I accept.”
And so, Evaloti had a new governor.
The next two weeks had passed by in a flash. Between arrangements for handing over the reins of the autonomous zone and studying, training, and making other preparations for my exile, time just flew by. The day after I convinced Daiagias to take up my position, we returned to the castle and burst into the king’s office.
“Daiagias is succeeding you...?!”
Needless to say, he had been quite thoroughly shocked. I guessed I couldn’t blame him. His son, whose interests up until now had solely consisted of sex and Bon Dage clothing, had suddenly decided to take over a city. I’d have been scared too.
“Zilba told me that I could leave all the hard work to his officials, and that I can turn the castle into my own carnal paradise.”
Don’t say it like that!
Following Daiagias’s words, the look on the king’s face had been priceless. It had a mix of understanding, exasperation, and like he had something he really wanted to say to me.
“Hmm...very well. Daiagias Gigamunt, I hereby appoint you as successor of Zilbagias Rage, the governor of the Evaloti Autonomous Zone.”
“I gratefully accept this appointment.”
But the king’s suspicions had stopped there, so the handover had gone smoothly. The choice of Daiagias would also be a big enough surprise that it would prevent any controversy from stirring up between Aiogias and Rubifya.
With our business done, Daiagias and I had left the king’s office. And once we were out of sight from everyone else, we’d high-fived. Now we were partners in crime.
After that, Virossa had started giving me and Layla lessons on how to survive in human society, teaching us basic survival skills like cooking and camping.
“In general, any city large enough to have walls will have members of the Holy Church guarding the gates. If you arouse even the slightest suspicion, they will test you with holy light...”
“This is how you use a flint. Compared to magic, it’s quite a bit of work, but you’ll have to make do. Actually...Your Highness. You seem to be a natural at this. No, Layla. You can’t secretly use your breath to start the fire.”
“Here we have edible plants. These ones taste terrible, but you can eat them if you have to. And these ones will make you sick if you eat too much, but can be used for food in emergencies. However, these mushrooms here will kill you. In general, mushrooms are very dangerous, so don’t even touch them unless you are desperate...”
The lecture had mostly been on information I already knew. However, the actually intriguing parts had been the bits about how night elf spies avoided detection. I had heard it before, but getting to hear the names of the puppet corporations in the Alliance so I could refresh my memory was good too. It would definitely come in handy...
“You picked exile? That’s crazy, even for you.”
“Gah ha ha! That’s the Rage family’s number one troublemaker for you!”
Shortly after, my grandmother Gorilacia and her brother Regorius had come to see me. It had been a while since the last time we saw each other. Gorilacia had been torn between worry and exasperation. Meanwhile, Regorius had laughed the whole thing off. While I say that, the fact he had made the journey all the way here meant he probably realized there was a good chance we would never see each other again.
“You can’t go around using your spear in the Alliance. I’ll sharpen your swordsmanship until it’s razor-sharp!”
“I’ll help too!”
And so in addition to Virossa, I had Gorilacia and Regorius helping with my swordsmanship training. To be honest, there hadn’t been anything noteworthy about it. My skills with a sword were already perfectly fine. Luckily, I had the explanation of Virossa’s training back when I first started using my swordspear.
Virossa had praised me as a natural-born genius, while the others had been flabbergasted that they had nothing to really teach me. But that just meant they had no reason to pull punches during actual training. I had taken on my human form, and pretended to be a hero fighting off Gorilacia and the others.
And with Liliana out of the picture, I had to swallow my pride when it came to healing.
“Your pet high elf ran away, huh? That’s unfortunate.”
“Tell me about it. I get that feeling more and more every day.”
I agreed with her wholeheartedly. With Liliana gone, the only way to heal my wounds from training was through Transposition. And that meant we needed slaves. Ten a day. That was my limit. And I fought as hard as I could to get that number even lower...
“I still wish I could go with you...”
According to Layla, Garunya had started saying that from time to time. After the shock of losing Liliana, she was about to lose me and Layla too. It was no wonder she was feeling so overwhelmed by all this.
She had suggested dyeing her white fur she was so proud of brown and having her ears and nose surgically altered to make her look like a dog beastfolk. However, the night elves had pointed out that Garunya’s cover would be blown immediately because of her smell, so she gave up, as much as it broke her heart. Back when I was a hero, the Fistmasters I fought alongside had always complained about things like “stinking like cats” or “stinking like tigers,” so that made sense.