Amelia and Ophelia: The Former Grand Duchess and Saintess.

"Mhmm....hgnn" Amelia groaned as her eyes fluttered open and the rays of the sun filled her vision as she sat up from the large and comfy queen sized bed she was in. 

She turned her head to her right and saw Ophelia sleeping peacefully, her arm was where she had rested her head the night before and the sight of her lover made Amelia smile. She looked around the extravagant and ornately decorated room she was in and took a deep breath as she took in the entire situation she found herself in. 

"From commoner to empress...I can hardly believe it" She muttered before she laid back down and scooted closer to her sleeping beloved 

Amelia stared as Ophelia sleept peacefully, the sunlight made her face bright and the sight of her lover becoming even more beautiful made her heart race. She leaned in close and planted a kiss on Ophelia's cheek before embracing her, with Ophelia's outstretched arm then touching her back, Amelia's eyes shifted from her back to her front and saw that Ophelia was awake and looking directly at her. A small smile on her face as she brushed Amelia's hair from her cheek and then planting a kiss on her forehead as she cupped her lover's face in her hand. 

"Good Morning my dear Amelia" Ophelia said with a soothing tone, her eyes boring into her lover 

"Good Morning Ophie" Amelia replied as she kissed Ophelia on the lips 

"Enjoyed the view I take it?" Ophelia asked as she propped her head up with one arm, a smirk on her face 

"I did, you looked like a goddess you know" The blonde haired empress answered with a smile of her own 

"Heh. I thank you for the compliment, are you feeling hungry?" Ophelia asked as she sat up 

"I am actually, for food, not...you know" Amelia answered with her face turning slightly red 

"Oh? I don't recall you being so...needy, in the morning" The black haired empress said with a smirk as she glanced at Amelia, nearing the blushing blonde and smiling as Amelia looked away 

"wEll, being away for an extended period of time...leads to....certain cravings" Amelia said as she tried her best to not lock into her beloved's eyes, her face turning bright red with embarrassment 

"Anyways! I am hungry for food and I am interested to hear what you have in mind" Amelia quickly added as she tried to pivot back to the the main topic, causing Ophelia to giggle before planting a kiss on Amelia's forehead

"Hmm, what do you crave? Besides me of course" Ophelia asked as she looked at her lover again, 

'Dangit! She will never live this down!' Amelia thought as she pouted her lips and looked at her 

"I...I want some beef stew and rice if you don't mind. I am actually really hungry" Amelia answered as she too sat up, rubbing her stomach to emphasize her hunger

"Alright then, I will tell the maids" Ophelia said as she got out of the bed and walked over to the wall on the right side next to their shared dresser

She tapped on a small diamond crest on the wall and it began to illuminate and began blinking. A few moments later there was a knock on the door. 

"Enter" Ophelia called out, causing the door to open and a dwarven maid to pop her head into the room 

"You rang Your Majesty?" The dwarven maid asked 

"I want a full pot of beef stew and some rice prepared for breakfast, we will be down shortly" Ophelia told her 

"At once Your Majesty! It will be ready in an hour!" The dwarven maid said with a salute before disappearing out of the room 

"Can you wait an hour?" Ophelia asked as she turned to her lover on the bed

"I am willing to wait, I did ask for it" Amelia replied with a nod 

"Alright, so why not take a stroll around the palace for a bit" 

"I would love to" 

"Then get dressed love, we go in ten" 

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A few minutes later the two of them were strolling around the hallways of the palace. The original castle that was still in the process of being built had been remodeled after Ophelia asked her predecessor for his permission and blessing to construct a more grander palace. Olertin agreed after he saw the blueprints for the building but unfortunately passed before its completion, much to Ophelia's regret as she wanted to give him a tour of the grand building once it had been completed. The "Raven's Rock" as she called it was much much larger than the old castle Olertin had planned, filled to the brim with living quarters for the servants and an entire garrison of Black Guards besides the garrison stationed in Fort Astin on the outskirts of Olertin City. There was also a massive library that was previously empty but was now slowly being filled by the books and volumes that came from Ophelia's manor that were safely transported along with the rest of the escapees. 

There was also a large kitchen located near the bottom of the palace that could serve the entire palace and several massive recreation facilities such as gardens and massive ballrooms that were scattered around for Ophelia and Amelia's leisure.

"This place is really grand. It's larger than your previous home" Amelia remarked as she admired the architecture as they walked through the hallway 

"Well, I had to make it so considering that it is OUR home now" Ophelia stated as she looked at her beloved and caressed her cheek 

"You really do so much for me, I can never thank you enough" Amelia said with a slightly sad expression as she placed her hand on the hand upon her cheek 

"There is nothing I am not willing to do for you Amelia, there is no need to thank me" Ophelia said as she leaned in and kissed Amelia before pulling back and smiling at her 

"Thank you" 

"No problem" 

After this small exchange, the two of them found themselves in a rose garden on one of the many floors of the palace, the view provided by the garden showed the duo the tops of the still working city the palace was centered in. Olertin City was still in the process of building several more housing and business districts that were meant for the escapees from the Erstad Duchy before it was partially scrapped by Ophelia who decided to build some towns and villages outside of the city for them until the district for them could be finished. 

"It's truly a lively city" Amelia said as she looked at the construction work in the distance 

"Well, the city accommodates more than three hundred thousand citizens, with more than four hundred and fifty thousand in the built-up tribal villages and towns. And with the forty thousand from the duchy that escaped with you, we have about seven hundred and fifty thousand give or take under our rule" Ophelia stated as she also looked out a that city  

{!}

"Nearly eight hundred thousand?! How is it that much?" Amelia asked with a shocked expression 

"Well, to be fair I did not fully expect the entire northern coast section to be filled with numerous tribes. We started out small sure, over fifty thousand but in the four-month period I expanded, I brought in so many tribes that called this northern coast section home. I am certain at this point that the entire continent is populated with large tribes and the number of people under our banner will continue to grow as we expand further south" Ophelia replied, her eyes still focused on the construction in the distance 

"Oh yeah...I heard from Mercy her name was? I remember overhearing that there is another nation on this continent that is a fully-fledged slaver state. Or am I wrong?" Amelia asked again with a worried expression this time 

"You are correct, there is a slaver state on the southern end of the continent. They send expeditions that scour the continent for tribals and they have gotten more active in the last two months" Ophelia said as she turned her gaze to her beloved 

"Then why do the tribals do nothing? Surely they have the larger numbers to destroy the slaving parties?!" 

"They do, but unlike their slaver enemies, the tribals are uncoordinated and easily fall into their traps. They have stopped trying expeditions into this region however as many of their parties have been eliminated the moment they crossed into our borders, seems like they are focusing on the middle of the continent as a result, I have personally gutted a few hundred by this point and I believe there will be more in the future"

"So are we going straight into another problem?" Amelia asked with a subtly tired tone 

"No my love we do not need to. I already have things handled for us so we can take all the time we need. Besides, I would be a horrible wife-to-be if I did not make time for us. So relax and put aside all of the troubles and problems, we can deal with them later" Ophelia said with a smile as she noticed the tone 

"Thank you my love, thank you"Amelia said as she hugged her 

"Anytime my dear, anytime" 

KNOCK! KNOCK! 

{!} 

Just then, there was a knocking sound behind the two and when they turned to face it, they both saw Percy and Mercy standing in an open doorway, with the former being the one who knocked. 

"If I may interrupt your time together, the breakfast you ordered is ready in the dining room" Percy said with her usual calm and collected attitude 

"Thank you both as always" Ophelia said as she smiled, with the two headmaids bowing before dissapearing 

"Want to eat?" She added as she looked at her beloved 

"Yes. I am starving" 

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Inside the lavish and elegant dining room sat a large table with about a dozen chairs, then nearby was a smaller circular one that had a pair of chairs. The smaller table was occupied by the two monarchs and in front of them was a black pot filled with a lovely beef stew and beside the black pot was a smaller white pot filled with rice. The two monarchs began to dig in while Percy and Mercy stood by the side and were diligently on standby for further orders. 

"Mhhmm, this is really good" Amelia remarked after she took a spoonful of beef, rice and some veggies doused in soup and felt it all melt in her mouth

"I agree, this is outstanding" Ophelia added after she swallowed her first bite as well 

"I shall give your compliments to the chef Your Majesties" Mercy said with a small smile 

"We are pleased to see that you both are enjoying the food" Percy added 

"Well it is really fucking good so I really am enjoying it" Amelia said as she took another few spoonfuls of her food

'Hmm...increased appetite? Amelia was not like this before...hmm, will ask later' Ophelia thought as she smiled at her and continued to eat

"Mhmm. So, what do you want to do after this?" Ophelia asked as she picked up a napkin and wiped some food from the corners of her lips 

"Hmmm....I want to go to where Mother and Mama are if you don't mind. I want to see how they and the orphanage kids are doing" Her beloved answered before finishing the rest of her food 

"Alright, we can do that. Mercy and Percy, prepare a Black Guard escort. We will be leaving shortly" Ophelia added as she nodded then looked at the two headmaids 

"It will be done" Mercy said as she and her fellow headmaid bowed and walked out of the room 

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A few minutes later, Ophelia and Amelia exited the palace and began the walk to the district of the city where the orphanage was located. As they walked, there was an ever column of soldiers following behind them, clad in jagged and menacing pitch-black plate armor and armed with large halberds and spears with some holding swords and shields. 

But despite the menacing image of the soldiers following behind them, the residents and onlookers greeted and bowed to their monarchs with respect and smiles as they passed them. With the children waving and running alongside the soldiers as they marched on. 

Amelia and Ophelia smiled and waved in return as they walked on arm in arm and hand in hand. Ophelia had her usual small smile on her face while Amelia had a slighlty embarrassed and nervous expression as she was not used to this type of attention and was trying her best to get used to it. 

"These are the people who are under our care" Amelia mumbled as she waved at the children passing her by

"They are, I know it is a lot to take in since you just arrived. So take your time, you needn't force yourself to accept the change so fast, take it easy" Her lover stated as she looked down at Amelia 

{!}

"You could tell?" Amelia asked with a slightly surprised expression

"Of course I could. You're slighlty shaking in the arms and your grip on my hand has tightened. Plus, your beautiful face can hide things from anyone else but not from me darling" Ophelia continued as she kissed her on the cheek 

"Just slowly get used to things, we are in no rush my love. So take all the time you need" She added as she leaned in closer 

"Thank you Ophie...thank you. I love you" Amelia said with a slight blush in her cheeks before she kissed her beloved on the cheek 

"You are welcome. And I love you too" 

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After an hour of just walking around the city and taking numerous detours, the duo finally arrived at a large manor with a large front lawn at the end of a long street. The buildings along the street to the manor were houses filled with citizens who greeted the duo and their guard when they arrived and the street itself had many more kids than usual running and playing around. On the lawn of the manor in front of them were a pair of women smiling and laughing as the children surrounding them were also laughing and playing. One was clad in a large black coat that covered her entire body and hid her features, with the only thing visible being her pristine silver hair and pretty but scarred face, while the other was wearing a nun habit that hid her curvaceous and voluptuous body and her curly brown hair was tucked into the hood off the habit. Amelia smiled as she saw them, her adoptive mama and mother, Mother Felie and Sister Mary. 

"C'mon Mama! You gotta run faster than that!" A little girl shouted with a joyous tone as she tagged Sister Mary on the hip before running away 

"Aww, you got me!" Sister Mary said as she gripped the skirt of her nun habit and ran after the little girl 

"Hehehe! Try and pierce through my defenses now! I activate Wall of Steel!" A young boy shouted as he held up a small cardboard shield 

"I will beat your shield with my ultimate attack! Ultimate Sword Slash!" A young girl shouted as she swung her cardboard sword 

"Remember to be careful both of you" Mother Felice said with a small smile as she glanced at the two of them 

"We will!" The duo shouted back as they began running around and playfighting 

After a few more moments of seeing the caretakers giving the children some words of caution, The two monarchs approached them. 

"Ahh, our beloved daughter and soon-to-be daughter have come, I must say Ophelia. The facility you have given us for the orphanage is quite...larger than we had anticipated" Mother Felice said as she and Sister Mary walked up to the duo 

"Indeed, I was not expecting the facility to be so grand, it's much, much fancier than the old orphanage" Sister Mary added 

"Well of course! You two are soon to be my mother and mama-in-law. I will need to do my best to please both you and your daughter. On that note, PLEASE BLESS OUR MARRIAGE!" Ophelia suddenly stated as she fell on her knees and bowed her head 

"O..OPHIE!" Amelia shouted in embarrassment as she slapped her beloved's curvy ass before turning away blushing. 

"Hmm, well. After everything you have done for us...how could we not no?" Sister Mary said 

"Mother!?" Amelia remarked with a flustered face as she looked back at her 

"That is true...she saved us from a xenophobic empire, provided funds to the orphanage and even gave us an upgraded facility. How can we say no?" Mother Felice added 

"Mama?!" Amelia once again remarked 

"You both have your points, so I do think you should bless their marriage, I can do the sermon for it" Another's woman's voice suddenly sounded as she exited then manor 

Stepping out was a beautiful kitsune wearing the garb of a Pope, with said garb hiding her beautiful and enviable body from everyone's eyes. Her black hair cascaded down her back and her ears perking up as they rested atop her head. 

"Ahh Liliana, you agree as well" Sister Mary said as she turned to her sister 

"Why of course! It's clear at this point that Ophelia loves her, so why keep it waiting no?" Liliana said with a sly smile on her face 

"You! All of you!!!" Amelia shouted as she covered her red face and collapsed onto her knees, although not crying, her mind was instead filled with the thoughts of finally uniting in Holy Matrimony with the woman she loves and that alone was weakening her. 

"So is that a yes?" Ophelia asked, her head still facing the ground 

The trio looked at one another and nodded before the two caretakers knelt before Ophelia and pressed their heads onto the ground, with Liliana and Amelia looking on. 

"We would be honored to give you our blessing. We know you will make our beloved daughter happy" Mother Felice stated 

"We trust you Miss Ophelia, we hope that you respect that trust and do your utmost to keep it and to make Amelia the happiest she has ever been" Sister Mary added

"I will, and thank you. I am proud to have her as my love and my life" Ophelia answered as she still bowed her head 

"That is all we needed to hear" Sister Mary said, before all three of them sat up and looked at each other 

After this, Ophelia turned to Amelia who was on the verge of crying. The happiness inside her almost on the brink of spilling out into tears and cries of joy as she looked at her. Ophelia smiled as she took Amelia's arms into hers and both of them stood up, she then got down on one knee and pulled out a small ruby box, opening it, she presented her beloved with a beautiful golden ring with a black diamond in the center of it. 

"Amelia Rothild, my beloved for my entire life. You who has been with me through thick and thin, has seen the best and worst of me and has smiled all the while. My most precious thing in the entire world, and my reason of existence. Will you marry me?" She stated as she looked lovingly into Amelia's eyes. A smile playing on her lips 

"I....I do, I fucking do!" Amelia shouted as she burst into tears and embraced her beloved with the cheers of the onlookers and the guards filling the air. 

"Let's take a picture!" Sister Mary shouted as she gestured to the manor, with the duo nodding and racing inside. 

They sat on one of the ornate couches in one of the massive recreation rooms and smiled, they wore very simple clothing despite the royal status as a small promise to each other in remembering their roots. 

"Closer now!" Mother Felice said as she gestured for the two to move in towards the center of the pic 

"Good! Now just hold it as we take the picture...there!" Liliana shouted as she held up the magic crystal and snapped the photo

"Oooo I can't wait to see how it looks!" Sister Mary said as the crystal was dragged over a special type of paper

After the crystal was done imprinting the image onto the special paper, Mother Felice took it and showed it to the sitting duo, a smile on her face. 

"It's...beautiful" The duo remarked as they gazed upon it, smiling at each other as they lifted their gaze from the photo. 

After the photo, there was a large feast and the duo spent the night joining the celebration with everyone in the orphanage and the rest of the city. All across the empire, there was an announcement of their future marriage, and the day of the announcement was marked as a national holiday called "Engagement Day". It was also a moment in which the duo had been waiting for to come for so long, they were now together and it was the best thing to have ever happened to them so far. Whatever problems or challenges they were to face were now going to be faced together, and nothing was going to stand in their way in their pursuit of righteous vengeance and the life they both longed for, a fight they were both willing and committed to do, if it meant that they would spend forever together. 

A/N: And here we go! Double Chaps baby! I am so happy to show you all the 2nd Vol of this series and I hope you will enjoy the ride that is to come with the chapters! If you have comments or anything, leave em below! I love reading them. I wish you all a HAPPY NEW YEAR OF 2024 AND I WISH YOU ALL THE BEST IN YOUR ENDEAVORS. And as always, Stay Safe and Enjoy Your Day! HAPPY NEW YEARS!