The Castle in the middle of nowhere.

Irene teleported with Lanka, Zirna and Gloria in front of the quarantine zone where Theon, Luna and Amber were already waiting for them. The centre, where they kept three people who survived being captured by the winter beasts, was sealed from the inside, which was at least weird. From the group of five saved by Sebastian, two changed into the winter beasts on the very doorstep of Avalon. The last three were under careful observation ever since. Theon told those gathered in front of the quarantine centre to stay behind, and he vanished in order to investigate what had happened in the facility. Sebastian and Galahad were standing in front of the entrance. Around them was gathered a considerable strike team composed of Praetorians and noble slimes in their ninja forms. The only slime still in the usual outfit was Rin, Lanka's familiar, who was always following her like a shadow. Irene went towards Luna and Amber, who discussed something with the hushed voices.

"I bet it's the same... Hello sister." Amber smiled faintly at Irene as Luna nodded to her.

"What is the same?"

"The last time the people acted strangely, they ended up changing into winter beasts." Luna crossed her arms and twitched with her left ear.

"Not necessarily..." Irene pursed her lips and lowered her head with a heavy sigh. "You are probably right... Gloria! What do you mean by them acting strangely?"

"I just replayed what the resident naga healer told me, my Queen." Gloria turned red, slowly realising she could have raised the alarm over a painful headache.

"I wonder, just what you were doing there, Gloria?" Amber looked at the woman and raised her brow.

"Oh... I forgot to tell you that Gloria asked me for permission to help in Avalon. Sorry, sisters." Irene quickly dismissed Amber's doubts. "I asked her to keep watch over here and be ready to use the scrolls I prepared... hmmm... just in case."

"Oh?" Amber looked with a more favourable smile towards Gloria. "That's very nice of you!"

"Thank you, your Highness." Gloria bowed politely but quickly added. "I just wanted to be helpful!"

Amber smiled, seeing the glow in Gloria's eyes. She saw it so many times before, this defiant look of a person who decided to change their fate. Gloria, who was captured, or saved, by Jester, was still under house arrest, but as long as she behaved properly, she was free to move inside Avalon. Judging by her actions, Gloria was determined to be as useful as possible so she could stay in Avalon after that. Amber looked at Luna, who was smirking, and Irene, who played innocent. She shook her head and smiled when the reinforced gates opened, surprising her completely.

•••

Why can't I have a free afternoon? This is getting ridiculous- every time I think things are becoming under control, some shit always hits the fan. Was this the case with kings of the old? I walked through the corridors of the facility, but I couldn't sense any ill will or evil force. The magical fixtures were working normally, and everything looked just fine. The white hospital-like walls and rooms were empty, so I headed towards the stairs. In the meantime, I returned to my internal rant. Who the fuck in their right mind wants to be a king? It's such a bothersome and ungrateful job, yet it seems everyone wants to be a king. I could have created anything else... but nooo... I had to build a castle, I just had to...

I walked down the staircase, and I still couldn't hear any disturbing noises. The closed doors to the first underground level were in front of me. I opened them and saw that the inside of the airlock was still sealed. The bright white light of the fixture in the airlock changed its colour to a dim red when the inner gates slid open. Still ranting over the fact I couldn’t have a break, I finally heard a muffled cry. The interior was in perfect condition, so with a raised brow, I entered the mess hall and sighed. There was a mess on the floor. Clearly, someone was carrying a food tray with their meal and tripped over. One of the Wolfkin women, Lydia, I believe, was lying on the table crying and holding her arm. Others were standing nearby, but it pleased me that they tried to comfort their badly hurt friend. The lone pixie finally noticed me and quickly flew over to report.

"Sooo... Why exactly have you sealed an entire facility, put all of Avalon on alert, and ruined my afternoon?"

The pixie hesitated for a moment, but started giving her report. It was clear to me now why Gloria had to fetch the message, and why it was so overdramatic. The pixie was a low-level denizen and was unable to send me complex thoughts through her link. Well, at least she tried. However, the slime maid that was keeping watch over Gloria should have done it without problems... Speaking of...

"And where are others?" This place should have many more denizens.

"Your Majesty! Lydia broke her arm, and there was no senior healer in the facility."

"Why? Where are they?!" I focused on the denizens assigned to the facility and facepalmed. "The nagas left to evolve?!"

I sighed and looked at the gathered and the Wolfkin in pain. "Please, don't worry. I will ask someone to heal you."

"My Lord! The days of darkness have started. Am I right?" The Elf man bowed politely but was a bit nervous.

"Yes." I replied to him shortly, seeing their hesitation. They looked much better than the first time I saw them, but they were still scared.

"We don't want to live in fear, your Highness." Fjorla looked timidly my way, but did not dare to look into my eyes. "Please... Expose us to the darkness and if we change into monsters... just give us a painless death."

They were looking at me, barely holding their tears, but I saw their resolve. I admired their bravery and smiled.

"All right, brave souls. If you survive this, I will allow you to live in Avalon."

•••

I opened the facility and stepped out. I slowly walked towards my Queens who were looking at me, surprised. Lydia, Fjorla and Cédric were standing near the entrance. Lydia gritted her teeth and stepped into the darkness of the day. I looked at her with a thoughtful facial expression. Cédric quickly followed Lydia, but Fjorla was too terrified to move. However, seeing that nothing happened to their friends, she slowly stepped out. Just After a few steps, she dropped to her knees and started panting heavily. I couldn't hold in my laughter when I saw her red face.

"Miss Fjorla, you can't hold your breath all the time."

"Oh... Hihihi... But I will try anyway, my King" She at least giggled.

"Irene, could you heal Miss Lydia? I'm quite happy to announce that this was a false alarm."

•••

I decided they would be exposed to dark light for a few hours a day before returning to the isolation centre. We were going to replay that until the days of darkness ended. Irene healed Lydia, and the latter promised to be careful.

"What was I doing before this?" I rubbed my eyes and looked at my notes.

Right... Roads. I looked at the map of the Cridian Kingdom and checked my notes. It looks like the dungeons in the Kingdom were spread out at regular intervals, at least compared to the Cridian towns and cities. What should I prioritize? The construction effort of the road systems will take months, if not years of work.

"I want a break..."

•••

When Luna was angrily writing down proper procedures, and Aurora was scolding her subordinates who failed at their task, while Irene sat at her desk in the other part of Avalon. Her office was placed in the cathedral. It was a spacious room where her ever-growing court could work as well. Irene was humming a merry melody while looking at Gloria. The young priestess of Hestia was overwhelmed by the grandeur and the sheer size of the room.

"So you want to work for me?" Irene raised her brow.

"Yes, my Lady!"

"So, what about your patron?"

"I don't think Hestia even noticed I'm gone..."

"Hey, that hurts!" An incorporeal voice surprised everyone.

In the middle of the room, a small campfire shows up out of nowhere, burning brightly. Right in the middle of it, a tall woman with curly brown hair appeared, and she smiled brightly to Irene and Gloria..

"Who are you?" Irene asked the woman, who looked at her insulted.

"I am Hestia! The goddess of families!"

"Uhum... That's cool." Irene dismissed her with a wave of her hand. "So, what are you doing here?"

But before anyone could respond and potentially escalate, a strong gust of wind could be felt and suddenly standing there was Zephyr. He bowed politely to Irene as he grabbed Hestia's hand. They talked for a few moments, and it was looking as if Hestia was going through some shock. She fixed her goddess dress and looked towards Irene briefly. Irene managed to count up to eight before Theon teleported in, wielding his mighty baseball bat called Stick of Doom. He looked at Zephyr, who was patiently explaining something to Hestia, then glanced at Irene, who just shrugged. Hestia looked nervously at him and Irene, finally deciding to speak one more time.

"I am sorry, powerful Queen of Avalon."She glanced at Zephyr, who was discreetly looking at her intently. "I came here to inform you that Gloria is my chosen one!"

"Oh?" Theon and Irene asked with amused smiles.

"Excuse me, what?" Gloria was in shock.

"Yes, my child! Your faith is shining like a bright star in the darkness of the void. You are my greatest devotee." Hestia smiled softly and went closer to Gloria. "And that's why I want to give you my blessing!"

Without waiting for any form of denial or acceptance, Hestia touched the head of Gloria. "Take this as my gift, my Archbishop!"

Without explaining anything, Hestia and Zephyr disappeared from their sights.

"Why can't I have a normal, free evening?!" Theon's complaint was way too much for Irene, who started laughing hysterically.