Steel and Mana

On the road back home, we stopped multiple times, sending in Yuri and her girls to gather information to see if there was any news spreading that would indicate what happened at the front after we left. Yet, no matter how many times we did so, of course, there was nothing to be gained. It did not surprise me because I wouldn't announce the loss of one of our symbolic weapons either. From what I know, those flying ships have been the staple of the Ishillian superiority for centuries. That is why I spent a lot of time on the road or while we camped, trying to figure out the spell that the Kingdom of Scorc used.

"Something is not adding up!" Merlin groaned, rubbing his head, looking flustered.

"I know." I answered with a smile, patting his shoulders while Yuri was wiggling her butt above a big pot, making stew at the main campfire. It was the first day when it wasn't looking like it would rain at night, so we were going to have some good food this time. Sit around with all of our soldiers and just have a good time.

"I will crack it, My Lord! You will see!"

"I know we will; that is why I am not worried, and you shouldn't be either. Relax a little, Merlin! We have Yuri's drawings; mine shows what I saw from our position when your powers reacted to it; we will reverse engineer the spell from the two sources!"

"That is what bothers me!" He continued while pouting, "The formation they made the slave draw up on the ground and what appears when the spell is being fired is different!"

"They probably segmented it."

I theorized that that was usually how complex spells worked, and what we saw bringing down the Justice was undoubtedly something at the Extreme Level of magic formations. I can easily see that it has a base structure, and the eight mages operating it are the ones that construct the rest of the formation. It would allow it to be adapted and changed with the additional plus of also serving as a kind of anti-piracy method. Even with my memory, having a clear image of the formation that appeared in the sky, there were crucial things I was missing.

I don't know which mage made which part. Did those separated segments come to life at once? Or is there an order introducing them to work? Is there any hierarchy between them? So on and so on... So, although we have it, we don't. I also missed out on the ship's secrets... too bad. Oh well, at least I got my wife back, had a taste of excitement, and managed to see how actual formations and real war work in this world.

No wonder they have armies in such a high number when thousands could be killed with one spell... Redundancy is a bitch, especially if it's made for war. Oh, we lost a battalion? No worries, just send in another two. I can't operate on that type of mindset, so I will have to go for a different approach. I will have to invent more mechanized units that can be protected via magic like their ship was. I will need to have my soldiers be tanky... Literally.

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Back in the capital city of the Empire, while the citizens did not know why most of the leaders looked nervous whenever they appeared, they did feel that something big was happening. Multiple high-ranking noble families began disappearing, and there were even some who were beheaded openly for treason, new, previously smaller bloodlines replacing them.

Of course, they didn't know that one of the famous flying ships was lost, but it did affect the southern front. Now, many of the mages sent down to repel the other unified countries' invasion had to be split, and part of them redirected to the eastern front. At the same time, the Empire's western borders were being fortified simultaneously, protecting themselves from a possible follow-up raid. They were sharks, but they were also surrounded by other predators, smelling blood in the water.

All of this was, for now, unimportant for the newly returned and appointed Duke Kustov. He was lying back home, recovering ever so slowly from his injuries. When he was found and brought back, he expected to perish, but to his surprise, he was spared. It had to be because of Avalon's interference... there was no other reason for it in his mind.

"Avalon?" He asked himself multiple times, trying to guess what it was, but he just knew that it had to be them. Why? No reason, no logic; it was just, and he accepted it without thinking why.

He was unequivocal in his head that the Empire kept him around to avoid dealing with a possible uprising or being weakened by needing to spend resources on raising someone as a replacement for another family. With the title of Duke, he got to access much more news than before and already made contact with the other leading nobles from whom a good amount were names he recognized as previous rival Marquesses. Yet, here they were, now all of them being Dukes... a once impossible thought.

"It's thanks to Avalon... saving my life..." He murmured, feeling confused again, but it was quickly replaced by being content and delighted. He wanted to laugh, even if it did make his body hurt.

The imperial mages did a great job fixing his injuries, but they could do nothing about some of the permanent ones. He would still need to recuperate for a long time, and there was a high possibility that his devasted leg, even after being fixed, would never bend properly again. But... thinking about leaning on a gold cane with his rank engraved into it was totally worth it. The title of Duke... you can not get higher than that, and now, he was finally free of military duties. Everything was coming together, all thanks to...

"Avalon..."

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"Ah, Avalon! It's good to be back!" I sighed after seeing my city's outline in the distance, making my men nod in agreement.

We left in the winter, but by the time we finally returned, it was already in the middle of spring, slowly turning into summer. I missed stepping on the correct roads. We no longer had to trouble ourselves by marching through muddy paths; it was such a relief that it made my warriors sigh, praising the workers who built it. I just hope nothing terrible happened back home while we were away.

By the time we arrived at the front gates, soldiers were already saluting, and people were coming forth to welcome us. Seeing it was heart-warming, and I noticed that Yuri couldn't comprehend it. She looked troubled and nervous, something that I had never seen before. Walking through the gate, it didn't take long for me to notice Sasha, Luna, Mikan, and my Mom standing there, and before I could blink, Sasha had already flung herself at me after bursting out in a surprisingly quick sprint.

"Ahahaha, we are back, and not a soldier has been lost!" I grinned happily, hugging back and rubbing her head. "I see that everything went well, huh?"

"Um!" She nodded, kissing me before climbing off and turning towards Yuri.

"Yo-" She started, raising a hand before being hugged by Sasha just the same, further increasing her shyness. "Geez... stop it, you are making me think you like me."

"Shut up..." She whispered but didn't let her hug end, not until Yuri returned it.

"I told her every day you would be back soon!" Luna giggled while skipping up to us, and I lifted her up without question for a kiss, too, and she was especially wild with returning it. "Nyauh..." She moaned after I let her go before the crowd around us started noticing that she was visibly turned on. It is a good feeling to know you were missed, ahaha!

"I prayed for everyone's safety and am glad the Gods have listened to me!" Mikan clapped, saying it with such honesty and happiness I thought she was about to cry. What, everyone thought we were going to die or something?

"How was it?" Asked my Mom, the only one who looked calm and collected while we began walking. I answered between throwing nods and waves at the people, feeling proud that so many came to welcome us without any prior notice.

"A general success. I will tell you everything, specifically because we may have just obtained a new spy within the Capital."

"Huh?" I watched as everyone looked at me questioningly before turning towards Yuri, who only shrugged.

"Maybe. We will see, but Merlin and he did ensnare a noble's mind. To know if it worked... time will tell us, I am sure of it!"

"He did what?"

"Hm? Why are we stopping?" Merlin asked, almost crashing into us, preoccupied with walking proudly and waving to people who were calling out to him. He was like a little peacock right now, making me chuckle.

"Let's go!" I laughed loudly, hugging everyone around me, "I'm starving for some good food! I will tell you all about it while we eat!"

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It was late into the night, and I was lying in my bed, sandwiched by my three wives, including Sasha. Surprisingly, my Mom didn't say no this time but made us promise that we would be gentle with her, and you bet we were. Not like with Yuri... or Luna, as the two were still interlocked, their wrists tied together.

"I think that's all that was noteworthy." Sasha finished, her head resting on my chest while I played with her hair, reporting what happened while I was gone.

"I am glad to hear everybody made it back in time. I knew the borders would be closed after what had happened. Once again, we are isolated... ah, no matter. We will deal with it! We may even do some more daring, drastic activities too!"

"Are we?"

"Yeah. With the Empire's focus landing on the eastern and southern borders, we can more easily move our pieces around the different regions. Plus, we will send one of them into the capital city to see if our newest spy worked out or not. He looked to be in horrible shape, so I am not expecting much, especially if they punished him for being the only survivor."

"What are you going to do if it worked?" She asked while drawing circles on my chest, wearing a happy smile.

"Huh... I never truly thought about it. Well, for now, I would just be happy to receive up-to-date news about what is happening with the Empire and on the front lines."

"Oh, there is one more thing!" She flinched, remembering something she completely forgot, making me raise an eyebrow while waiting for her to continue. "Baron Elliot sent over a message. He wants to visit us!"

"Ah, yes, yes! I did promise him. Well, I am back, so we will send word that he can come! I will dispatch Oleg to welcome him and escort him over. I do have a thing in mind; I just don't know if Elliot would be happy about it..."

"And that is?"

"I want to merge our territories." I answered, but it was something that was only theoretical for now. "What I mean is that I want to continue building our road systems and connect their city to ours. That way, we could speed up the trading between us, and I want our fledgling clerks to go there and take up roles under him for training."

"Isn't Elliot's land different from ours?"

"Oh, yes, yes, it is. But it would give a great experience to the new generation who are still learning, and if they experience a much more divided and less streamlined version of our government, they won't be stumped when something happens here. Plus, they can build relations with people. I want them to slowly warm up to us and get benefits that they can't get from anywhere else."

"Wouldn't Elliot think you are trying to overthrow him?"

"Maybe." I hummed, but then again, I think I could sway him, "That is why his visit will be important. My goal is to make him realize that being a Baron in the Empire is nothing compared to being my Minister~! So we will have to truly awe him!"

"Heh... so you want to conquer the Dutchy of Wheat~!" She giggled, rubbing her face against my body.

"Kind of... I know that we can't stay hidden forever, so I do want to turn our neighboring nobles into people who appreciate us. That will be our first layer of defenses."

"What would be after that? Our military?"

"Yep, exactly. I now have a better picture of what the Empire or any other power is capable of. I will have to get to it and modernize our military. We have limited numbers, so we must concentrate on developing something that can make up for it in strength. Plus... we are not people who will go on conquering others, so we will focus on fortifying our territory, building defenses that will not be felled easily by either men or beast!"

Suddenly, an image appeared in my head, showing me playing tower defense while the Empire's forces tried to reach Avalon. Huh... I just hope that never happens. A weapon is best if its presence alone is enough to deter others. War is nothing but burning money at a rate that I don't want to indulge in...