The Castle in the middle of nowhere.

Twirll and Lance were already returning to Avalon from their mission when I contacted them. They have stolen some resources, destroyed some structures and generally were a pain in the ass. The Cridian detachment was scouring the entire area in search of the intruders, but because Lance and Twirll killed all enemy dungeon scions, they were on their own. To complete the picture of chaos and destruction, the enemy dungeon denizens were running around and signalling that "the traitor" was there. In the meantime, Lance and Twirll basically shredded the Mead Hallow Dungeon defences and stole about half a million mana points.

I'm so proud of them.

•••

When Theon was still sorting things with his enemies, his Queens were waking up. The Flower Girls were already awake and eating breakfast when Amber, Irene and Luna entered the living room. With a simple smile and raised hand, Amber stopped the younger women from jumping and probably creating an incredible mess on the table. The women, despite yesterday's fatigue, spent a wonderful evening talking about everything and nothing. This was refreshing, especially for Irene, who was one of them not too long ago. For The Flower Girls, the Queens of Avalon were the most powerful women in the entire world. The Queens sat for breakfast, but before they started eating, Amber smiled warmly towards Lanka.

"I never really managed to thank you properly, Lanka. I would probably have died in the shadow realm if not for you." Amber started a conversation casually and bowed her head towards Lanka. "Thank you, Lanka. You saved me once more."

"You don't have to thank me, my Queen!" Lanka shook her head. "Besides, you saved me as well."

Amber smiled warmly and shook her head. "That's out of discussion Lanka- one day I will repay this debt." Amber took a sip of her tea and looked slowly at the Flower Girls. "I was thinking before I went to sleep yesterday and I came up with an idea. I want you all to become our ladies-in-waiting."

"B...b...but, your Majesty!" Lilly stuttered in panic but once again Amber raised her slender hand.

"Theon will finally get the idea that he needs our help, so I want to start organizing everything early enough." She smiled.

"Maybe Lady Lanka is qualified to become a lady-in-waiting but we are just simple girls..." Started Rose, but Lanka's poorly masked laughter made her look at her friend. "What? You are a noble!"

"But I wasn't one not so long ago." Lanka shrugged and smiled in apology to the Queens.

They felt awkward, but the Queens wanted this informal talk and Luna easily saw through their fears. The five girls were tense and uncomfortable, but at the same time incredibly excited about the place they were.

"Listen, you don't have to be worried. You can speak openly. We wish to learn more about the needs of our people." Luna warmly smiled. "Avalon is like no other place, but it's not perfect by any means! Girls, you must understand that we, the people who live here, have to help King Theon. He can't do everything on his own and so do we. We will need your help to make Avalon an even better place!"

"What do you expect of us, my Queen?" Iris asked, nervously holding her cup of tea.

"Many things..." Amber smiled faintly. "There will be some paper works to cover, and later you will be acting as our envoys. As you know, King Theon appointed you all as our bodyguards, and recent events showed that he was right to do so."

The girls gazed at themselves and held their breaths. Becoming a lady-in-waiting would be a dream come true! They pretended to consider Queen's Amber proposition as Irene just smiled and quickly took a sip of tea to hide her facial expression. She remembered very well how a few months ago the girls talked and sighed about the palace in the hopes of one day, maybe, just maybe becoming Queen's Amber ladies-in-waiting. Well... Irene was always determined and ambitious enough to do anything and everything to be with Theon, so when the opportunity presented itself, she need not to have thought twice.

•••

I was sitting in my office and I was looking at the blank sheet of paper in front of me. The crisp winter air blew in through the open window, but the cold air was nothing compared to the icy cold feeling deep inside my heart. Arani finished the interrogation of the Goblin Dungeon core, or should I call him Bob. Investigation explained that... Bob exchanged his varg riders for trolls and earth wyrms. I also learnt why he held people- they were kept as the promised payment to the goblin tribes that helped in his attack. God damn it, Bob. You don't make it easy for yourself.

Fortunately for me, the power decline of Demesne and the death of the Blood Dungeon created a power vacuum in the area that was swiftly exploited by Bob, who dominated this part of the Cridian Kingdom. Thanks to it, the dungeon wars should ignore this part of the kingdom.

"Good news for once..." I sighed loudly and rubbed my eyes.

Legio I Fulminata will need the next two weeks to respawn. Technically, I could use my mana and force respawn them, but there is no real need to rush it. Yes, I lost one legion, but I have four more. Legio Aegis suffered minor losses, but considering the fact it's the biggest legion, it wasn’t a big deal. Normally a legion is about five and a half thousand strong, but the Aegis has ten thousand soldiers. Soldiers who don't need to sleep, eat or have free time. Legio Umbra, guardian of Avalon in the Shadows, is still not fully formed, but the four centuriaes are enough to properly man the fortifications. Legio II Ferrata and Legio III Infernus Ignis are ready to be fielded at any moment.

That leaves me with checking on the interrogation of captured demons and probably poking Demesne to check if she is rebuilding as I planned. I took a deep breath and smiled. Why not go there and check on my own? With that idea on my mind, I teleported to the Palace and, with surprise, I discovered that my Ladies were not at home. I checked their tea room, greenhouse, and even the war room, but no one was there. I should have brought cell phones into this world. I flickered my fingers with a 'eureka!' expression on my face and teleported to the Magic Tower. I entered Stella's workshop and looked around, but my Ladies obviously were not there as well. She was writing down something in the large book, but she noticed me immediately and welcomed me.

"Stella, I was wondering lately... Is there any form of long-range magic communication we can use?" I asked, sitting in the guest chair in front of her desk. "I can use my link to communicate with any denizen without any limit, but you all can only communicate back in Avalon in the same manner. Also, I can't communicate at all with my Queens in a similar manner, which is rather inconvenient. So my question is a rather simple one- is there some form of magic spell, like telepathy, that we can use?"

"I think it's possible... The Scions and the Queens would be able to use that, maybe some boss class denizens and for sure Lady Lanka... I think it's doable, my King." She flew towards me on her colourful wings and sat down on her chair. "Simple telepathy shouldn't be hard for high-level mages."

"Wonderful! Take care of it. It would be very helpful for our scouts or expedition forces to report when something unexpected occurs." I smiled. "Oh, and by the way. Haven't you seen my Queens?"

"No, my King." She shook her head.

"Thank you, Stella."

I closed my eyes and opened the build overlay. They have to be somewhere in the Avalon... There they are! In Wendy's shop. I said goodbye to Stella and teleported in where I saw quite an amusing scene. The Flower Girls were arguing with each other while Wendy and Nadi tried to present the Queens with different patterns of formally looking dresses.

"Wrong timing?" I awkwardly smiled.

"Hmmm... We are mostly done for today."

"I wanted to check how Demesne is doing with rebuilding, and I wanted to ask if you want to go with me."

•••

Demesne was looking at the slowly rising sleek structures behind her brand-new defensive wall. The impressive wall was ten meters tall and had four incredible gates. The only way inside led through the drawbridges over the moat. The nearby lake was an excellent source to fill the moat and even build a harbour. She actually was happy with her new temporary room in one of the defensive towers. Demesne couldn't wait to see the new manor, but already she could tell her King meant business. It was apparent that he was not thinking like any other dungeon she had the displeasure to meet.

The walls, towers and gates were built using the King's mana and building materials. All other structures are under construction, and it would take some time to get this properly done. Demesne, in the meantime, was also learning how she should interact with the adventurers or people of the world in the future. She was looking over the plans once more when she once again sensed his incredible presence; King Theon arrived in person. With him, however, arrived three insanely powerful beings, but they were not scions, of that she was certain. How curious...

•••

"I think this place can be incredible if we use its full potential!" I smiled and showed them around me. "It's not the biggest, this location is incredible!"

"How exactly?" Amber asked and fixed the hood of her new fur-lined long coat.

I smiled widely at them and I opened the tower gate that led to Demesne's temporary sanctum. Wendy made an excellent job with the coats; my ladies fell in love with the soft and delicate rabbit fur. The Flower Girls followed us as well, and to be honest, I felt that something is different between my Queens and the girls, but I have no idea what. Everything seems okay though and the last thing I want is to look for problems where there are none. After climbing the staircase, we entered the cosy room where Demesne’s statue was temporarily residing.

She was a sleek, masterfully made sculpture of the young wolfkin girl that was patting the large wolf. The white alabaster she was made of was masterfully carved, almost making her look alive. The cascade of her long hair was blown by the unseen wind. The effect was even further enhanced by the amazing work put into the wolf. Judging by its size, it was at least a great wolf, with fur combed between the fingers of the wolfkin girl.

"Welcome you, my King!" She quickly greeted me and I felt her confusion when she noticed everyone behind me.

"Welcome again, Demesne. I wanted to officially introduce you to the Queens of Avalon."

"Welcome Demesne. My name is Amber va'Theon."

•••

I could feel her mixed feelings, but it looked like she was accepting them. The introduction went smoothly and my Queens happily exchanged their opinion about the surrounding area- the breathtaking forests and incredible lakes so I moved into the business.

"Demesne. I think we can finally talk about your upgrades. I will listen to your ideas."

"If you don't mind, my King, I would like to evolve my wolves into the Garms. They look so interesting and promising!"

"Hmm... The gatekeeper of the underworld. Yes, that is really a promising idea. What about an additional spawner?"

"I would like to have bears!"

Bears? Oh yes. This could be a very good idea.