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Adventurers’ Advent
With a sweep of your leg, you knock Arlin off his feet. Aria is still on her knees, panting heavily as she tries to recover her breath. “Aren’t… aren’t you pushing us a little too hard, Master?” gasps Arlin as he rubs his behind. They had been attempting to put a scratch on you for well over two days now. The boy and his sister can barely keep their eyes open; the only thing keeping them going is their adrenaline-fueled desperation, driven by the looming possibility of taking a trip to the regeneration pod. Of course, the difference in ability and raw strength aside, it was not fair simply because of the fact that you do not need to sleep much. Food and drink and sleep are something you do out of bodily habit and because it is pleasant, not because it is necessary. You do not need it. They, on the other hand, do.
“Suffer now and reap the benefits later,” you say. “Have I told you about the story of the boy who worked hard until he could fight a demon general? The heir to a wealthy merchant family, his town was burnt down by an invading horde of monsters. All for revenge, the driven boy trained so hard that he barely got an hour of sleep every day, fueled by potions to keep him going. In a month he made so much progress that he went from being a spoilt brat to being able to take on his hated foe.”
“Are you talking about yourself, Master?” asks Aria.
“What? No. Of course not! That’d be stupid. I was the one who gave him those potions in the first place, and for free too. They didn’t come cheap, I can tell you that. Suffering through the initial loss, I reaped the benefits when he almost, but not quite, defeated the demon general. The evil demon was weakened enough for me to make my dashing appearance, dealing the easy final blow to save him while getting all the credit. The boy was very grateful after that.”
“Really?” asks Rin, who has just arrived. “I didn’t know you started so young.”
“You’re never too young for this,” you shrug. “Best to start at an early age, it gives you more of an advantage through experience.”
“I see.” Rin nods her head sagely. “I understand.” She is smiling, though for what reason you do not know. It unnerves you slightly, and again you feel that discomforting lurch in your stomach. Having taken an interest in your training of the twins, the demon princess has been spending more time around you recently. In any other circumstance you would have seen it as an opportunity, but with how you are now, it is only a terrible waste.
“Anyway,” she continues, “there’s news from Erise. I thought you would like to know immediately.”
“The villagers? What have they to say?”
“A passing merchant has informed them of the adventurers’ expedition. They have left the capital and are on their way here. Seeing as Erise is the nearest known village to their destination, it is likely they will establish their main encampment thereabouts. There are around fifty adventurers of all stripes. Accompanying them are a company of about a hundred soldiers and a handful of knights.“
“That is quite the sizeable force,” you say.
“That’s not all. They are also led by Prince Feyton Yuiry.”
“Not a name I’ve heard of. A bastard child of the king’s?” you suggest.
“He seems to be the Crown Prince’s son, so it would be the king’s grandchild” says Rin. She giggles. “Of course, it would be interesting if he was a bastard son conceived by the king and his son’s wife, wouldn’t it?”
“Another one? And we still have that brat from the bandits to deal with,” you sigh. Arlin flinches at your words – he has been worried about her for some time. You will have to check up on his progress later. As for this prince, he might have been sent here to coup some cheap glory. The wheels of your mind begin to turn as you consider the possible scenarios and their benefits.
“Aria, Arlin,” you call out.
Arlin gets unsteadily to his feet. So does Aria, with a more determined look in her eyes.
“Get some rest for today. General training is over. Tomorrow we begin your specialized training.”
As the twins walk off, bantering as they do so, you look at the village and the small army of golems busy at work. There are still things to do – the geopolitical situation of the region is more complicated than you had originally suspected, there is some mysterious Dark Lord carefully avoiding human attention and approaching the monsters, shady cloaked figures are poking their intrusive little fingers into every little thing – and above all else your condition is still nowhere near a cure. Still, you have made advances in some areas. Fortunio’s thieves are steadily expanding their reach. You have established a partnership with the slimes and the Governor of Ontoglia. Your reputation as Trider Muhchacraken is terrible, but infamy is - in its own way - just as useful as fame of the good sort, as long as you are able to leverage it properly.
And now, with the adventurers coming your way, and a prince tagging along with them, you have a new opportunity to exploit.
But first, now that you have sent the twins off, it is time for some well-deserved rest…
---CHAPTER END---
With a sweep of your leg, you knock Arlin off his feet. Aria is still on her knees, panting heavily as she tries to recover her breath. “Aren’t… aren’t you pushing us a little too hard, Master?” gasps Arlin as he rubs his behind. They had been attempting to put a scratch on you for well over two days now. The boy and his sister can barely keep their eyes open; the only thing keeping them going is their adrenaline-fueled desperation, driven by the looming possibility of taking a trip to the regeneration pod. Of course, the difference in ability and raw strength aside, it was not fair simply because of the fact that you do not need to sleep much. Food and drink and sleep are something you do out of bodily habit and because it is pleasant, not because it is necessary. You do not need it. They, on the other hand, do.
“Suffer now and reap the benefits later,” you say. “Have I told you about the story of the boy who worked hard until he could fight a demon general? The heir to a wealthy merchant family, his town was burnt down by an invading horde of monsters. All for revenge, the driven boy trained so hard that he barely got an hour of sleep every day, fueled by potions to keep him going. In a month he made so much progress that he went from being a spoilt brat to being able to take on his hated foe.”
“Are you talking about yourself, Master?” asks Aria.
“What? No. Of course not! That’d be stupid. I was the one who gave him those potions in the first place, and for free too. They didn’t come cheap, I can tell you that. Suffering through the initial loss, I reaped the benefits when he almost, but not quite, defeated the demon general. The evil demon was weakened enough for me to make my dashing appearance, dealing the easy final blow to save him while getting all the credit. The boy was very grateful after that.”
“Really?” asks Rin, who has just arrived. “I didn’t know you started so young.”
“You’re never too young for this,” you shrug. “Best to start at an early age, it gives you more of an advantage through experience.”
“I see.” Rin nods her head sagely. “I understand.” She is smiling, though for what reason you do not know. It unnerves you slightly, and again you feel that discomforting lurch in your stomach. Having taken an interest in your training of the twins, the demon princess has been spending more time around you recently. In any other circumstance you would have seen it as an opportunity, but with how you are now, it is only a terrible waste.
“Anyway,” she continues, “there’s news from Erise. I thought you would like to know immediately.”
“The villagers? What have they to say?”
“A passing merchant has informed them of the adventurers’ expedition. They have left the capital and are on their way here. Seeing as Erise is the nearest known village to their destination, it is likely they will establish their main encampment thereabouts. There are around fifty adventurers of all stripes. Accompanying them are a company of about a hundred soldiers and a handful of knights.“
“That is quite the sizeable force,” you say.
“That’s not all. They are also led by Prince Feyton Yuiry.”
“Not a name I’ve heard of. A bastard child of the king’s?” you suggest.
“He seems to be the Crown Prince’s son, so it would be the king’s grandchild” says Rin. She giggles. “Of course, it would be interesting if he was a bastard son conceived by the king and his son’s wife, wouldn’t it?”
“Another one? And we still have that brat from the bandits to deal with,” you sigh. Arlin flinches at your words – he has been worried about her for some time. You will have to check up on his progress later. As for this prince, he might have been sent here to coup some cheap glory. The wheels of your mind begin to turn as you consider the possible scenarios and their benefits.
“Aria, Arlin,” you call out.
Arlin gets unsteadily to his feet. So does Aria, with a more determined look in her eyes.
“Get some rest for today. General training is over. Tomorrow we begin your specialized training.”
As the twins walk off, bantering as they do so, you look at the village and the small army of golems busy at work. There are still things to do – the geopolitical situation of the region is more complicated than you had originally suspected, there is some mysterious Dark Lord carefully avoiding human attention and approaching the monsters, shady cloaked figures are poking their intrusive little fingers into every little thing – and above all else your condition is still nowhere near a cure. Still, you have made advances in some areas. Fortunio’s thieves are steadily expanding their reach. You have established a partnership with the slimes and the Governor of Ontoglia. Your reputation as Trider Muhchacraken is terrible, but infamy is - in its own way - just as useful as fame of the good sort, as long as you are able to leverage it properly.
And now, with the adventurers coming your way, and a prince tagging along with them, you have a new opportunity to exploit.
But first, now that you have sent the twins off, it is time for some well-deserved rest…
---CHAPTER END---
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At least the hundred golems that are okay or skilled at combat can help to guard the village if there's some sort of intruder or something.
Wait, what? if I got this right, Erd has been "only" brutally 
