Amelia and Ophelia: The Former Grand Duchess and Saintess.

As the Imperial Army marched further into the territory of the Hinterlands Confederation and freed more and more villages filled with enslaved clan members the Confederation had conquered, all of them were sent back to the city of Outreach, a city that was still in the process of construction when the march began. The city had several housing districts that housed the recently freed slaves, with a few of these now full of families and survivor groups bunked together in homes built to house them. In the Governor's Palace at the center of the city, Irly, being the Minister of Interior Relations, was given special authority to command the local garrison and a portion of the Halkare Logistics Corp to help in her mission, she was also swamped with work as she and her colleagues had to interview the incoming refugees and then sort through paperwork detailing houses, their capacity and where they were while also recording the information about the people they interviewed. 

"So you're telling me that another four thousand are on their way here?" Irly asked as she placed the report down on the hardwood desk, looking over at an Imperial Soldier who had arrived earlier than the rest of the column escorting the recently freed slaves 

"Yes Madam Minister, Her Majesties send their warm regards as well and their thanks for a great job you have done so far" The soldier added as she nodded at her 

"Hmmm, tell them likewise soldier, dismissed and thank you for the report" Irly replied with a nod of her own, seeing the soldier put his helmet back on before walking out 

"Haaa....another wave, and we are almost at capacity here" Irly remarked as she stood up from her seat and leaned against the window on the wall next to her,

Looking out of the window, she could see soldiers moving around boxes and crates packed with food, clothing, and other necessary items to help another group of freed slaves following another set of soldiers settle into one of the many housing districts quickly filling up with others before them. A small smile flashed on her face as she was reminded of why she was working hard, reminded of the job that her dual monarchs had placed upon her as they marched southward. The job of integrating these people into the empire and expanding the citizenry. 

{!} 

At the knock on the door, Irly pulled away from the window and looked at the massive double doors leading into her office, 

"Who is it?"  She asked 

"Colonel Allorance, Madam Minister" A gruff voice answered her

"Oh! Come in, come in!" Irly added as she moved back to her desk, her eyes on the door as it opened 

Stepping into the room was a dwarf wearing the standard high-ranking officer's attire which was a black overcoat over a greyish-blue uniform that had a badge with the design of a pair of crossed swords over a box on the right chest. The dwarf had a silver beard that ended around his waist, with a smile on his face and he was followed by two male humans who were also wearing greyish-blue uniforms, a color reserved for those in the Halkare Logistics Corp. 

"Ah colonel, do you have anything to report?" Irly asked as she looked down at him 

"Nothin too serious Madam, the next shipment of amenities will be here a day later than usual, some monsters came crawling out of an unchecked dungeon and have interrupted the shipment" Allorance told her as he sat on the chair 

"I see, was anyone hurt?" Irly asked him as she looked concerned 

"A few of the new recruits suffered bruises and some scratches, other than that, they will be fine, the priests from the Church of Life can heal them with no problem" The dwarven colonel replied with a smile 

"Oh right, they are now properly in numbers now huh" Irly remarked with an enlightened expression

The Church of Life, commonly referred to as just the Church, had spent the better part of a year trying its best to produce priests who could perform healing magic just like Empress Amelia but to a lesser degree as none of them had the huge array of blessings at the Empress' disposal. These priests were all healers who subscribed to the doctrine produced by the current head of the Church of Life, Pope Liliana, the aunt of Empress Amelia. The doctrine of the church was one of service and compassion for all who were made from Histy and Harcun and these people had to complete rigorous training in order to be accepted into the church as one of the preachers to go forth and preach the word of the church while also serving the empire they found themselves in. While their influence over the populace was starting to grow, Pope Liliana forbade and even abhorred the idea of the Church and the State it was in becoming one. She had seen how that had corrupted her previous home and she worked tirelessly to ensure it did not work here, personally checking the egos of each Priest and Healer who had joined their ranks and expelling those who wished to turn the Church she had created into the same abomination she had once served. Those who were expelled were stripped of what magic they were taught and left in shame. 

But those who committed to the teachings they were taught, they could either serve as part of the army as healers or be part of the social services division of the empire and provide healthcare to those in need, while also being paid nicely for their services as healthcare was paid by the empire .

"Right, moving on, is there anything else to report?" Irly asked Allorance 

"Hmm, nothing much Madam, a few delays due to the army having to clear up some dungeons with adventurers and that is about it" Allorane answered her 

"Good. I wouldn't want something worse happening, make sure your men are taken care of, we still have another group coming our way and they are arriving tomorrow" The elven Minister of the Interior stated 

"Oh? And how many are we talking about this time Madam?" The dwarven colonel asked 

"Four thousand" Irly answered 

"By the Gods, four thousand in one group, we will all be very busy then. I will try to do what I can to get the shipments here later tonight" 

"The better it will be for everyone, I do not want a massive jam for us to clear if we run out of commodities and supplies in the middle of the day" 

"I understand Madam, we will try our best" Colonel Allorance replied as he nodded 

"Thank you then colonel, you are dismissed" 

.........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

A few hours later and elsewhere in the city, near the southern side quadrant that was home to a large series of screening areas where the refugees would be funneled into and then interviewed and checked for injuries and if they needed it, given food and other commodities before they could be relocated. There was a large group of people who had arrived after a week's trip northward, they had come in by wagon and a lot of these people were wearing large cloths and blankets provided to them by the Imperial Army when they rescued them. The grey rags that they were forced to wear by the Hinterlands Soldiers who had stripped them of everything were all they had with them, that and the family that survived alongside them. 

Irly stood inside the largest of the tents in the screening area and she saw a formerly unnerving sight that had grown common over the months, children, elderly, normal people of different races, all of them either in pain or injured and cold, the Imperial Army had done their best to ensure these people were fed and at least clothed as they were sent northward and now it was their turn to ensure these people were able to live peacefully, as citizens of an empire ready to bring them in and protect them. 

{!} 

She saw some of these refugees and her staff leave the tent after completing their interviews, being given some commodities like new clothes to replace the grey rages they were wearing, some warm food to fill their bellies and even some last-minute final health checks by the priests and healers present at the end of the processing procedure. 

As she walked around and helped her colleagues check up on refugees, two children, a young leo beastkin boy and a young arachnia girl approached her, their eyes being filled with fear as to what they were doing but mixed with the resolve to see it through to the end. The young boy tugged on her sleeve and the two of them locked eyes 

"Ecuse me....miss" The young leo beastkin boy began 

"Hmm? Oh, yes. What is it little one?" Irly answered as she crouched before him 

"Ummm...I heard from the big metal men that you had someone who can...can help us" He stammered 

"Of course, what do you need help with?" Irly asked him 

"We want our parents back" The young boy stated, his response sending a wave of sadness down Irly's spine and into her heart, it was a question she had heard multiple times over the past few months and while she knew that Her Majesty Amelia could revive the dead, she knew Her Majesty was still busy, but while older teens asked those questions, she had never been approached by the kids since her colleagues would deal with them. 

"I..ummm" Irly began 

"The metal man said you could help us! Please! I want my Mama back!" The boy cried 

"And I want my Papa back!" The arachnia girl joined in, with Irly's heart wrenched as she saw tears flow down their faces, this sight finally broke her, crushing the wall of emotional restraint she had placed over the last few months to try and stop herself from possibly interrupting the most important mission of the empire 

"Shhh, ok ok...come here, I will get someone to help you don't worry. You will see them again I swear" Irly replied as she pulled them in close and began to soothe them to the best of her abilities 

"Get me Empress Amelia" She ordered as she looked at one of the younger people under her command

An hour later, after putting the two kids to bed in the screening area. Irly was back in her office in the city and standing before a crystal projection of her monarchs, both of them dressed in their plate armor. They were looking at their Minister of Interior with curious gazes as they tried to think about why she would call them. 

"Something the matter Irly?" Ophelia began 

"Yes Your Majesty. A lot of the refugees...are asking for help" Irly answered as she bowed her head before looking at them straight 

"Hmmm, I take it, it is help that you and the others cannot provide?" Ophelia asked 

"It is Your Majesty....many of them...want their family members back" The elven minister stated, her eyes holding back tears 

"I see..." Ophelia nodded as she turned to her beloved who had an understanding expression on her face 

"Do you have information regarding where these people are buried?" Amelia asked as she turned to Irly 

"Yes, many of the sites we had sent adventurers to investigate were mass graves...we have them marked on our maps" The elven minister replied

"Good, send the information to us and dispatch some adventurers wagons to meet me there, I will arrive with some soldiers in a few days" Amelia ordered as she looked at the elven minister 

"Understood Your Majesty. Thank you for doing this" Irly added as she bowed her head 

"No need to do that Irly, I would have done it sooner after we had secured the south but now is also a good time, just keep doing what you are doing there and all shall be fine" Amelia told her as she flashed a small smile that warmed and calmed Irly's heart, something that Her Empress' smile did for all of her subjects 

"Be sure everything is running smoothly Irly, you have done well so far so don't stop now" Ophelia added as she also flashed a small smile that filled Irly with a steady resolve 

"Understood Your Majesties I will not let you down" The elven minister replied with a determined gaze filled with steely resolve 

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Once the meeting finished and the projection of Irly disappeared back into the crystal, Amelia and Ophelia turned to one another, with both of them locking eyes as they both pulled one another close in a loving embrace. 

"Are you alright with me leaving your side for a while?" Amelia asked her as she looked at her beloved 

"What do you mean? I am going with you" Ophelia replied, a smile on her face 

"But the march-" 

"Can wait for us to continue. Thanks to the information given to us by our H.I.S.S. agents who have infiltrated the Confederation, we know that they have moved all of their legions and civilians into one massive fortress they call the "Cradle" located a week's march south. Apparently, this is the largest settlement and their final fortress. With news of us reaching them from our battle on plains of Allatanua and the death of their High Chief, they are now desperate. There are some stragglers for sure but with a majority of their forces and citizens concentrated in one area, it has provided us a golden opportunity to wipe them all out in one masterstroke" Ophelia cut her beloved off as she stroked Amelia's right cheek 

"You don't mean" 

"Oh I do. They now know there is a massive invading army and not a monster horde encroaching on them, so why not just give them monsters or rather a monster to fight" Ophelia stated with a large smirk on her face 

"I see...well, we haven't really given him something to do ever since the beginning of the march where he scared everyone shitless with him flying over the continent before disappearing into the sky" Amelia remarked with a nod 

"Exactly, it's time for them to have some fun...that being said, Spithe!" Ophelia called out inside the tent they were in 

{!} 

Suddenly, a figure teleported to their side, a figure that was dressed in a sharp butler suit, white gloves and all, with the height of the figure being in the middle ground of Ophelia and Amelia and with the scaley and intimidating double dragon heads sprouting out from the single suit they were wearing locking onto each monarch. Their golden eyes looked at them with anticipation and the smiles on their faces showed them pretty happy with them finally being called by their masters. 

"Hello! How do yo wish" 

"For us to help you" 

"Masters?" Spithe asked with a bow from each head 

A/N: And there we go! I hope you all enjoyed the content of this chapter and I hope you are all ready for the fury Spithe is about to bring down next proper chapter hehehe. If you got comments or reactions to the chapter, let me know in the comments below and as always, Stay Safe and Enjoy Your Day!