Chapter 120 1: Preparation And Doubts
Ten days had passed since the celebration, and not once since did the group have any time to enjoy their time.
Each day, Lucifer would train in the knight's yard with the girls for six hours while Gwen was forced to complete official business in order for her to be accepted as both the Princess and Knight of the Hero...
Rarely would they meet other than at night as the group realised what Lucifer meant by things changing and that it would become difficult even to think.
To think ten days passed so fast, and tomorrow, we will leave with several of the nobles and head to the capital.
Lucifer was lying on the roof of the keep—his eyes closed, listening to the sounds of life passing him by, the soft wind brushing against the stone walls, people in the distance calling out their yield and things for sale... knights in the yard and the clash of steel.
He felt a sense of peace wash over him as Lucifer opened his eyes, looking at the cloudy skies above as he thought of many things...
Tomorrow, we leave—I wonder if there will be more troubles along the path... I still haven't learned anything about that strange existence either, but the girls are making more progress in their combat skills.
Soon, I will need to find harder opponents to fight to improve myself, or they will overtake me.
Standing up, he jumped off the keep and landed on the ground without harm, a small puff of dirt billowing behind him as Lucifer walked inside, wearing an elegant tunic with black pants and leather boots.
I wonder what they are all up to...
Walking down the hall, he entered the knight's yard to find Fel training the clansmen, who now wore black leather armour and wielded new weapons—thanks to the money earned from selling the Hargreaves knight's armour, money wasn't much of an issue, while the other girls were helping out in town to earn money for their own pockets.
He saw her green hair tied back, revealing her lovely eyes but didn't interrupt her teaching as the raccoon troops were too weak.
It was a brilliant idea though, Marina is quite smart, and she's even sent a letter to her sisters hoping to add more arachne to our forces...
Although she looked scared and worried Lucifer might abandon her for the smaller type of girls who don't have huge bodies.
He decided to leave it all to Fel as they would return to their territory in the future, and she would continue to increase the army by purchasing slaves or those without money and giving them a future to become true citizens and free.
Leaving Fel, Lucifer decided to find Layna and Irina, who were in the market with Gwen as the people bowed to her respectfully, but he could see the hidden thoughts of envy in their eyes...
Of course, they would—this woman is not only the most beautiful in the world, but she is also the future queen. It seemed some people were corrupted by the propaganda and lies of the current queen and her bitch daughter.
The common people are not stupid—they know who is the real power behind Gwen... but she doesn't care about the rumours of the Hero marrying a dirty, impure princess. From the moment they met, he had never said anything regarding her scar and even praised it as beautiful, so now the mark on her face, she used it like a medal of beauty and stopped feeling it was ugly.
It seems the girls have begun bonding with each other in small groups...
Walking through the town, he found Marina wearing a maid outfit and holding a basket with Syliva as they picked up herbs. Layna and Irina were shopping together, buying various things, as Lucifer found Gwen speaking with the merchants, who were smiling and giving her discounts and bargains...
The artisans and tradesmen are beginning to accept her more... I guess because of all the business she brings them and Gwen's natural charm mixed with the other girls is almost irresistible...
He didn't interrupt the girls, walking through the streets, smiling at the children who looked at him with sparkling eyes before chasing after him. Lucifer bought some sweets from a vendor and gave them to the kids, patting their heads as he walked to the keep.
Honestly... in his heart, he reverted to the past Lucifer in the last ten days, apart from training and the night battles with the women...
He spent most of the time meeting people, enjoying the ales and random butchers, getting to know the people of this world, no longer treating it as a game in the back of his head, and really getting to know them.
It feels like I'm in my early twenties again and working for the company, rushing around making fliers, polls and questionnaires to see what product of ours they liked most... tossing a few sweets to the kids reminds me of buying meals for the homeless people who looked famished.
A soft hand suddenly wrapped around his, the woman in question passing his guard, while the opposite side was taken by a small ball of slime that wrapped around his fingers like a glove...
"Estella, Nora?" Lucifer asked, looking at the two beauties who smiled at him as Estella pecked his cheek while Nora blushed and tightened her grip on his hand.
"Husband~ what are you doing here alone? I thought you would be training with Fel."
"No—she is teaching the clansmen, so I didn't want to interrupt... I decided to walk around and get to know the people; what about you both?"
"Pururu!" (We were stealing.... buying nice sweets and food from the merchant!) Nora chimed as Lucifer smiled, patting her head as Estella looked at his handsome face and blushed, nodding.
"Yes—we were buying food from the merchants...this slime started to eat a lot of the blueberry ones, so I had to spend more than budget... But it shouldn't be a problem as I used some of my funds~ are you hungry, honey?"
"Mmmm, a little... do you want to walk with me?" Lucifer asked as Estella nodded, with Nora Pururuing and clinging to his arm as they walked through the town.
"Let's visit the pie shop and have a light snack before this evening's dinner—I found several flavours that were delicious!" Estella beamed as she pulled his hand, causing Lucifer to smile, seeing this new side of her.
No longer the seductive bishop and now a more homely and gentle housewife.
It was fun—Estella was shy but slowly spoke more openly, while Nora was always active, climbing around Lucifer and trying to eat more sweets. Eventually, the three returned to the keep, with Gwen and the girls just arriving with bags and items.
It seems that most of my girls are very jealous... Let's manage time better so they are all happy in the future...
Layna saw him and bowed with a blush, remembering the training from the morning where he spanked her for being too eager, then became a little jealous when looking at Nora and Estella, who were holding his hands.
Irina also looked a little jealous but held it in as Marina and Sylvia entered, placing the herbs inside the kitchen before the cook began preparing dinner as Gwen walked upstairs with Lucifer, Estella, Nora and Irina.
Layna pouted, sitting with Sylvia and Marina, chatting about the town and what happened, while Fel didn't eat with them and basically lived with the clansmen and trained them until they dropped, her stern glare causing them to stand up and work harder.
Lucifer entered their large room, with Gwen and Irina following behind as the maids greeted them before heading upstairs—Irina looked at his hands holding Nora and Gwen... but learned that image is important in places like this, and instead, she followed behind, keeping her thoughts in her mind.
"Soon, Irina... soon..."
Lucifer sat down on the bed as Gwen lay on his lap, purring. She was too exhausted from all the work, and this became their daily routine. Before eating, he would stroke her hair and massage her shoulders while Irina prepared tea for them.
Today, though, he decided to include Nora and Estella and would give all of the girls some pampering, not just Gwen, stroking her hair as Irina poured a cup of tea for Lucifer, who thanked her with a smile as Nora began massaging Gwen's feet while Estella rubbed her shoulders...
"Husband... how was your day... today?" Gwen asked with a relaxed tone as Irina served the two other women some tea as well before sitting beside the bed with a cup.
"It was good—I walked around the town and got to know the people... soon we leave for the capital... Gwen, what is the current plan?"
"Mmmm... that's good, my shoulders are so sore... We should be leaving tomorrow around noon, and the caravan will have more than two hundred knights escorting us... the Dalton thing will not repeat... But I am worried—the rumours of the capital are not good, and it seems very bleak."
I feel that is worrying...
"Does that mean we need to be even more careful than expected?" Lucifer asked while his hands slipped down her back; with a slight crack, Gwen let out an unbecoming moan as her hips trembled.
"Nnnn... we have to...." Gwen nodded as Irina looked at Lucifer with a complicated face.
"Husband—can you massage Irina next..." Gwen requested as Lucifer nodded, patting the bed as Irina blushed and lay down on the bed with her shirt removed while Nora and Estella watched Gwen, who seemed to drift off and purred softly.
His hands began to move, and she let out a strange sound as Irina blushed, feeling Lucifer's hands rub her tense shoulder, releasing the pressure that built up today as she tried to ignore the strange moans from her lips...
"Master~ mmmm, yes, right there, your hands are so magical..." Gwen giggled as Lucifer continued to massage Irina, who was blushing and breathing heavily...
It seemed the times of relaxation were truly over, and from tomorrow, the old man in me would be put to sleep again... A shame I didn't get to go fishing.