The sun had set on the Capital, but the fires of the political upheaval were just beginning to burn. The Royal Vizier was in chains. Highmaster Garius was in the dungeon, awaiting a dawn execution. The Beast Taming Guild, an institution that had held the Empire in a chokehold for a century, was effectively decapitated.
But in the quiet of the Emperor's private study, the mood was not one of celebration. It was the sober quiet of business being concluded.
Emperor Aurelius sat behind his desk, once again dressed in human clothes, though he had neglected to put on shoes. He was nursing a goblet of wine, watching Kael with unblinking, predatory eyes.
Valeria stood before the desk. Her armor was scuffed, and she was exhausted, but she stood straight. Behind her, the five husbands stood in a protective semi-circle.
"You made a mess of my arena," Aurelius noted, swirling his wine. "The cleaning bill will be astronomical."
"Send it to the Guild," Valeria replied evenly. "I believe you seized their assets."
Aurelius chuckled. "Sharp. I like that. Yes, the Guild's treasury is now the Crown's treasury. Which brings us to the matter of your reward."
He picked up a heavy scroll of parchment sealed with red wax.
"I have drafted the Royal Decree. It declares the Beast Taming Guild a terrorist organization. All 'Beast' classifications for sentient Hybrids are hereby nullified. From this day forward, Hybrids are recognized as 'Therianthrope Citizens' of the Empire."
He looked at Kael, Ignis, Silas, Caspian, and Lucian.
"You are no longer property," Aurelius said. "You are men. You can own land. You can vote. You can kill anyone who tries to collar you, and the law will call it self-defense."
Silas let out a breath that sounded like a whimper. Ignis adjusted his cuffs, his hands trembling slightly. Kael remained stone-faced, but his golden eyes shone with a fierce, wet light.
"However," Aurelius continued, looking at Kael. "There is a complication."
The Emperor stood up and walked around the desk. He stopped in front of Kael.
"You are of the Sun-King lineage," Aurelius said quietly. "My cousin. My blood. The Empire needs strength, Kael. If you stay here... I can make you a General. I can give you a palace. I can give you the respect you were denied for twenty years."
Valeria felt a cold pit open in her stomach. It was a genuine offer. A life of luxury and power among his own kind. Far away from the mud and snow of Oakhaven. Far away from the woman who had once been his owner.
"He is free," Valeria said, forcing her voice to remain steady. "It is his choice."
Kael looked at the Emperor. Then he looked at Valeria. He looked at the scuffed armor, the dark circles under her eyes, the fierce determination that had dragged them all out of hell.
He reached into his breast pocket and pulled out the Consort Contract they had signed in the ruined farmhouse.
"I have already signed a treaty, Cousin," Kael rumbled.
He placed his hand on Valeria's shoulder. It was heavy, warm, and possessive.
"I am not a General," Kael said. "I am a Husband. And my place is in the North."
Aurelius stared at him for a long moment. Then, he threw his head back and laughed.
"Loyalty," the Emperor grinned. "Rare. Very well."
He went back to his desk and signed the scroll with a flourish.
"Then I grant Oakhaven the status of an Independent Grand Duchy. You answer only to me. No taxes for ten years. And you, Valeria..."
He handed her the scroll.
"You are now Grand Duchess Valeria of Oakhaven. Try not to die on the way home."
The Final Debt
They left the Palace through the main gates. The night air was cool. The city was in chaos, with town criers shouting the news of the Guild's fall on every corner.
But their business wasn't quite finished.
Waiting by their black carriage was a man. He looked aged, his finery rumpled, his face pale.
Duke Vespera.
When he saw them, he straightened up. He put on a smile that didn't reach his eyes - the same smile he used to wear when he hosted galas while his daughter starved in the annex.
"Elise!" the Duke called out, opening his arms. "My dear girl! You were magnificent in there!"
Valeria stopped. Her husbands bristled, forming a wall, but she stepped through them.
"My name is Valeria," she said.
"Of course, of course," the Duke waved his hand dismissively. "Valeria. A powerful name. Listen, child. We need to talk. That stunt with the Bank... it was brilliant leverage against Garius. But now that Garius is gone, you need to lift the freeze. The family accounts are locked. I cannot pay the staff."
He stepped closer, lowering his voice to a conspiratorial whisper.
"I helped you, didn't I? I stepped on Garius's neck. I proved my loyalty. Now, come home. We can combine the Ironclad Proxy with the Vespera influence. We will rule this city."
Valeria looked at him. She activated the Merchant's Monocle one last time.
[Target: Duke Vespera.]
[Relationship: Biological Father.]
[Status: Parasite.]
[Value: 0.]
"You helped me," Valeria said slowly, "because you were afraid the Guild would drag you down with them. You didn't do it for me. You did it to save your own skin."
"We are family!" Vespera insisted. "Blood is thicker than water!"
"But not thicker than ink," Valeria said.
She reached into her pocket and pulled out the Red Tear.
The Duke's eyes lit up. "The necklace! You found it! Thank the Saints. Give it here, and I can unlock the vault myself."
He reached for it.
Valeria dropped it.
It hit the cobblestones with a metallic clink.
The Duke froze. He looked at the necklace, then at her.
"Pick it up," the Duke hissed.
"No," Valeria said.
She pointed to the jewel.
"I removed the Authorization Crystal, Father. That is just gold and glass. It's worthless. Just like your promises."
The Duke went white. "You... you kept the crystal? But that controls the Garnett Trust! That is my money!"
"It was my mother's money," Valeria corrected. "Intended for her daughter. You stole it. You used it to pay Ma and Pa Garnett to abuse me. You used it to bribe Garius to kill me."
She stepped closer, her voice dropping to a deadly chill.
"I am keeping the Trust. Every copper. I am taking my dowry, my inheritance, and the interest you owe me for ten years of neglect."
"You can't!" the Duke shrieked, his facade crumbling. "I will be ruined! I have debts! The mortgage on the estate... the loans for the canals..."
"I suggest you sell the canals," Valeria said coldly. "Or perhaps Isolde can get a job. I hear the laundry district is hiring."
She turned her back on him.
"Valeria!" the Duke screamed, lunging for her. "You ungrateful wretched—"
Kael turned. He didn't roar. He simply unsheathed his sword - just an inch. The sound of steel rasping against leather was enough.
The Duke froze. He looked at the Golden Tiger, then at the Dragon, the Wolf, the Shark, and the Phoenix. He saw five Kings who would happily tear him apart.
He shrank back.
Valeria climbed into the carriage.
"Drive," she ordered.
The carriage rolled away, leaving Duke Vespera standing alone in the dark, kneeling on the cobblestones, clutching a hollow necklace.
The Road Home
The journey out of the Capital was quiet. They passed the city gates without inspection. The guards saw the Imperial Seal on the carriage and saluted.
Once they were on the open road, heading north under the starlight, the tension finally broke.
Ignis pulled a bottle of wine from a bag - stolen from the Duke's cellar during the heist. He popped the cork with a spark of magic.
"To Citizenship," Ignis said, passing the bottle.
Silas took a swig and wiped his mouth. "Does this mean I have to pay taxes now?"
"Yes, but you got ten years off, at least," Ignis sighed. "Civility has its costs."
Caspian leaned back, looking out the window at the moon reflecting on the river. "I am going to build a pool. A heated one. In the middle of the farmhouse."
"We have the money for it," Valeria smiled, patting the pocket where the Trust Crystal sat. "We have the money for a castle."
Kael sat opposite her. He hadn't spoken since the Palace. He was staring at his hands.
"What is it?" Valeria asked softly.
Kael looked up. "The Emperor offered me a legion. He offered me a crown."
"He did," Valeria agreed.
"And I chose a farm in the snow," Kael mused.
"Regretting it?"
Kael smiled. It was a slow, rare expression that transformed his face.
"No. A legion follows orders. A family follows heart. I am where I belong."
He reached out and took her hand.
"Take us home, Wife."
Two weeks later. The Northern Province.
The carriage crested the final hill overlooking Oakhaven.
It wasn't a ruin anymore. Thorne and the liberated Bear beastmen had been busy. The gate was repaired. Smoke rose from three chimneys. The fields, though covered in snow, were cleared and ready for spring planting.
It looked like a home.
But as they approached the gate, Lucian, who was flying ahead, swooped down and landed on the carriage roof.
"Trouble!" Lucian chirped.
Valeria leaned out. "What is it? Did the Guild attack?"
"No," Lucian said. "But someone is waiting at the gate. Someone... cold."
Valeria grabbed the Merchant's Monocle. She zoomed in.
Standing at the entrance to Oakhaven, wrapped in white furs, was a woman. She was flanked by two massive undead constructs.
It was Lady Lysandra, the Regional Director of the Guild. The Necromancer.
She had escaped the Capital purge because she had been in the North. She had her own army. And she was standing on Valeria's doorstep.
But she wasn't attacking. She was holding a white flag.
Valeria stopped the carriage. She stepped out, Kael at her side.
"Lysandra," Valeria called out. "You are trespassing on a Grand Duchy. I have the authority to execute you."
Lysandra smiled. Her skin was pale as death, her lips blood red.
"You could," Lysandra called back, her voice smooth as ice. "But then you would never find out where the real threat is coming from."
She gestured to the north, toward the jagged peaks of the Frost-Fang Mountains.
"The Guild was a nuisance, Duchess. But something else has woken up in the mountains. Something that eats mana. Something that scares even me."
She lowered the flag.
"I propose a truce. You have the food. I have the undead army. If we don't work together... this winter will kill us all."
Valeria looked at the Necromancer. She looked at her husbands. She looked at the blue system box floating in the air.
[New Mission: Survive The Winter of Dead Gods. Upgrade evolution of the Husbands.]
"Open the gate," Valeria said.