Leona and Balmond returned at dusk on the third day. They weren't alone.
Walking between them was a third figure—an elf woman with hair the color of pale birch and eyes that held the weary green of a deep forest. She carried a staff of living wood, and at her belt hung a dozen small pouches. She looked around the golden-lit basin with the cautious awe of someone who had just walked into a legend.
Leona marched straight to the central fire where Kazuto, Mavis, and Doom were reviewing housing plans. "Mission report," she announced, her voice crisp despite the dust on her clothes. "Diplomatic contact with Oakenwall established. Trade for salt and basic metals is agreed upon, pending our first shipment of crafted goods. They are… wary, but pragmatic."
Balmond grunted, setting down a heavy pack that clinked. "Salt. And nails."
"And," Leona continued, gesturing to the elf woman, "this is Elara. A dryad-seer from the Whispering Woods. Her grove was burned by Mother Bloom's 'evolutionary experiments.' She was seeking rumors of a safe place. We encountered her scouts near the Perimeter. She has… a proposition."
Elara stepped forward, her movements fluid and silent. She bowed her head slightly to Kazuto. "Keeper of the Golden Kingdom. I have seen your city in the sky in the dreams of the earth. It is a scar of peace upon a wounded world." Her voice was soft, like leaves rustling. "My people are scattered, hiding. We are tenders of green life, not warriors. We cannot fight the Seats. But we can help a place… grow."
Mavis's eyes narrowed. "Help how?"
Elara untied one of the pouches at her belt. She poured a handful of its contents into her palm: seeds. They were not ordinary seeds. They gleamed like polished metal, some sparkled like glass, one even pulsed with a faint, inner light. "Seeds of the primordial groves. They require magic to awaken, and peace to thrive. They grow fast. They bear fruit that nourishes body and spirit. They can turn stone into soil in a season." She looked at the barren basin walls. "You have safety. You have will. You lack life. We can provide it."
It was an offer almost too good to be true. Fast-growing, magical crops that could solve their food problems for good.
"What do you want in return?" Kazuto asked. In his experience, nothing was free.
"A corner of your land. A grove of our own, where the youngest and oldest of my kin can live without fear of being turned into fertilizer or furniture by Mother Bloom. We tend the great garden; you keep the walls."
It was a simple exchange. Land for food. Sanctuary for expertise.
"Do it," Ban said, appearing from behind Kazuto, his eyes locked on the glittering seeds. "Do it right now. I will cook things you have never dreamed of! Fruits! Spices! Actual flavor!"
Kazuto looked at Mavis. She gave a slow, analytical nod. "The ecological risk is unknown, but the potential reward is immense. And having a dryad enclave gives us botanical advisors. It is strategically sound."
He looked at Leona. She had already pulled out her slate. "I will allocate the southeastern quadrant. It has the most consistent light exposure and is geologically stable. We will draft a formal land-use agreement."
Kazuto almost smiled. In less than a minute, his team had analyzed, planned, and started the paperwork. He turned back to Elara. "Welcome to Delivery. The southeastern quadrant is yours. We'll help you clear it."
Elara's serene face broke into a real smile. "Then let us plant the first seed tonight, under the gaze of your Kingdom. It is a good omen."
The community gathered as Elara chose a spot at the very center of the basin. She didn't dig. She placed a single, opal-like seed on the bare ground. She knelt, placed her hands on the earth on either side of it, and began to sing.
It wasn't a song with words. It was a low, resonant hum that vibrated in the chest. The ground beneath the seed darkened. A tiny, green shoot, glowing with its own soft light, pushed up through the dirt. It grew, not with the speed of a chaotic magic, but with the steady, inevitable pace of a time-lapse film. In minutes, it was a slender sapling, its leaves shimmering like silver coins. A single, perfect, apple-like fruit, glowing golden, hung from its lowest branch.
Elara stopped singing. She plucked the fruit and handed it to Ban. "The first harvest. It is a gift."
Ban took it reverently. He sniffed it, his eyes wide. He took a small knife, sliced a piece, and tasted it. He stood perfectly still for five full seconds. Then, a single tear rolled down his cheek into his beard. "It tastes… like the idea of sweet," he whispered. "And sunlight. And… hope, I think."
He shared tiny pieces with everyone. The taste was indescribable. It filled you up in a way that had nothing to do with your stomach.
As the wonder of the moment settled, Leona cleared her throat. "Secondary mission report," she said, her voice lower now. "While in Oakenwall, I heard whispers from caravan guards. The other Seats are… talking. The disappearance of Talene and the manifesting of the Kingdom has not gone unnoticed. They are calling it an 'anomaly of the highest order.' Titanus, in particular, is said to be… curious."
The good mood soured. The Titan. The one who could summon black holes.
"The Salt Lord, Magnetar, is also interested," Leona added. "Apparently, the sudden stabilization of a twenty-mile zone has… interesting effects on local magnetic fields. We are a curiosity. And for the Seats, curiosity is often followed by experimentation."
Kazuto looked up at the Kingdom, at their new, impossible ceiling. They had just solved one problem and gained a dozen more. They had a dryad, magical crops, and a salt supply. They also had the attention of cosmic bullies.
"Okay," he said, turning to his council. "New priorities. One: get Elara's grove established. Food is stability. Two: Leona, formalize that trade route with Oakenwall. We need to be a partner, not just a weird neighbor. Three: Mavis, I want you to start thinking about the Perimeter not just as a line, but as a… filter. Can we control what comes in? Not just stop harm, but maybe… identify intent?"
Mavis's eyes lit up. "A psychic or conceptual screening protocol. Fascinating. The Kingdom's laws might be able to be refined. I will begin analysis."
The group broke up, buzzing with new tasks and new fears. Elara went to see her new quadrant, followed by a train of fascinated goblins. Leona started drafting the trade agreement. Ban was whispering to the glowing fruit as if asking for its recipe.
Kazuto stood by the newly planted silver sapling. He placed a hand on its smooth bark. It was warm.
From the kitchen area, Talene watched, a clean pot in her hands. She was staring at the glowing tree with an expression not of her old hunger for power, but of something simpler: wonder, and a deep, aching sadness for all the beauty her flames had ever burned.
The seed had been planted. It would grow. But outside the golden light, in the dark of the wider world, other forces were stirring, drawn by the scent of something new, something safe, something they could not understand and therefore felt compelled to break.
Kazuto took a deep breath of the sweet, magically fertile air. The delivery was growing. And the shipping notifications for incoming trouble were starting to pile up in the mental inbox.